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Chronic myelogenous leukemia

Molecular-defined clonal evolution in patients with chronic myeloid leukemia who were exposed to ionizing radiation following the Chernobyl nuclear disaster

Leukemia volume 34, pages 645–650 (2020)Cite this article

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In 1986, the worst accident in the history of the nuclear industry occurred, when a series of explosions destroyed Unit 4 of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, after a misguided safety test, which simulated a power failure, went disastrously wrong. An estimated 10–20 million people were exposed to significant levels of radioactive fallout. In subsequent recovery work, about 600,000 people, known as liquidators, were employed to decontaminate the immediate area and build the sarcophagus over the destroyed reactor [1].

A number of epidemiological studies have predominantly shown a dose-related increased incidence of thyroid cancer due to radioiodine exposure from Chernobyl fallout, with a higher risk for those exposed at a younger age. In addition, an increase in incidence and mortality from non-thyroid cancers has been reported [2]. Two case-controlled studies have provided evidence of increased leukemia risks for liquidators from Belarus, the Russian Federation, and Baltic countries [3], as well as Ukrainian recovery workers [4]. Despite the well-established link between radiation exposure and cancer risk [5, 6], analyses regarding the molecular background of radiation-related leukemic disease are incomplete.

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Acknowledgements

The excellent technical assistance of Mrs. Anja Waldau is gratefully acknowledged. The study was supported by the Interdisciplinary Center for Clinical Research (IZKF, Universitätsklinikum Jena, Germany).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Abteilung Hämatologie und Internistische Onkologie, Klinik für Innere Medizin II, Universitätsklinikum Jena, Jena, Germany

    Thomas Ernst, Jenny Rinke, Julia Hagen & Andreas Hochhaus

  2. Department of Hematology and Transplantology, National Research Center for Radiation Medicine of the National Academy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine, Kyiv, Ukraine

    Iryna Dmytrenko & Iryna Dyagil

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  1. Thomas Ernst
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Correspondence to Thomas Ernst.

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Ernst, T., Rinke, J., Hagen, J. et al. Molecular-defined clonal evolution in patients with chronic myeloid leukemia who were exposed to ionizing radiation following the Chernobyl nuclear disaster. Leukemia 34, 645–650 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41375-019-0679-2

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