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Differential impact of additional chromosomal abnormalities in myeloid vs lymphoid blast phase of chronic myelogenous leukemia in the era of tyrosine kinase inhibitor therapy

Leukemia volume 30, pages 1606–1609 (2016)Cite this article

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Chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) is defined by the presence of BCR-ABL1 fusion resulting from t(9;22)(q34;q11.2), its variant translocations, or rarely, cytogenetically cryptic chromosomal rearrangements. BCR-ABL1 is detected as the sole chromosomal abnormality in ~90% of CML patients in chronic phase (CP).1, 2 With disease progression, however, clonal evolution occurs and additional chromosomal abnormalities (ACAs) emerge. Approximately 60–80% of CML patients in blast phase (BP) have ACAs.3, 4

BCR-ABL1 encodes a tyrosine kinase with deregulated activity. Tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) that target BCR-ABL1 kinase activity have dramatically decreased the progression of CML from CP to BP and improved patient outcome.5, 6 The long-term cumulative probability of progression of CML from CP to BP is only about 5%.7, 8 Despite the revolutionary progress in the treatment of patients with CML-CP, CML-BP remains a therapeutic challenge. In general, CML-BP is a fatal disease in the era of TKI therapy, with a median survival of only 6–10 months.9 Further investigation into the stratification and optimization of treatment of patients with CML-BP is warranted.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Hematopathology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA

    Z Chen, J L Jorgensen, W Wang, C C Yin, M J You, L J Medeiros & S Hu

  2. Department of Hematology, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China

    Z Chen, E Jabbour & H M Kantarjian

  3. Department of Leukemia, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA

    J E Cortes

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  1. Z Chen
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Correspondence to S Hu.

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Author contributions

ZC and SH designed the study, collected and analyzed data, and wrote the manuscript. JEC, JLJ, WW, CCY, MJY, EJ, HMK, LJM and SH provided pathology data and clinical information. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Chen, Z., Cortes, J., Jorgensen, J. et al. Differential impact of additional chromosomal abnormalities in myeloid vs lymphoid blast phase of chronic myelogenous leukemia in the era of tyrosine kinase inhibitor therapy. Leukemia 30, 1606–1609 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1038/leu.2016.6

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