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Mature B-cell lymphoblastic leukemia with MLL rearrangement: an uncommon and distinct subset of childhood acute leukemia

Leukemia volume 22, pages 1056–1059 (2008)Cite this article

Precursor B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL) represents a heterogeneous group of hematopoietic neoplasms with variable outcome.1 The cytogenetic profiles, genotype and immunophenotype of the malignant cells have a considerable impact on prognostic stratifications with recognition of low, intermediate and high-risk groups. These stratifications, resulting in risk-adapted therapeutic regimens, underline the crucial importance of biological characteristics in the management of patients with ALL.

In contrast to acute leukemic presentation of Burkitt lymphomas, surface immunoglobulin (sIg) expression is typically absent on these precursor B-ALL cells.1 In addition, Burkitt leukemia is classically associated with the FAB-L3 morphology and the presence of 8q24 (MYC) translocation. However, rare cases of sIg+B-ALL with non-FAB-L3 morphology and lacking MYC rearrangement have been reported in both adult and pediatric patients as ‘mature B-ALL’.1, 2

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Service d'Hématologie Clinique, Hôtel Dieu, CHU de Nantes, Nantes, France

    N Blin & J L Harousseau

  2. Service d'Oncologie Pédiatrique, Hôpital de la mère et de l'enfant, CHU de Nantes, Nantes, France

    F Méchinaud

  3. Service d'Hématologie Biologique, Hôtel Dieu, CHU de Nantes, Nantes, France

    P Talmant, R Garand & H Avet-Loiseau

  4. Service d'Oncologie Pédiatrique, CHU de Caen, Caen, France

    P Boutard

  5. Cytogénétique hématologique, Service d'Hématologie Biologique, Hôpital Purpan, Toulouse, France

    N Dastugue

  6. Laboratoire d'Hématologie, Hôpital Necker, Paris, France

    E A McIntyre

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  1. N Blin
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  9. H Avet-Loiseau
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Correspondence to H Avet-Loiseau.

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Blin, N., Méchinaud, F., Talmant, P. et al. Mature B-cell lymphoblastic leukemia with MLL rearrangement: an uncommon and distinct subset of childhood acute leukemia. Leukemia 22, 1056–1059 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.leu.2404992

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