scholarly journals Prospective Analysis of TEL Gene Rearrangements in Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia: A Children's Oncology Group Study

2008 ◽  
Vol 26 (13) ◽  
pp. 2186-2191 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey E. Rubnitz ◽  
David Wichlan ◽  
Meenakshi Devidas ◽  
Jonathan Shuster ◽  
Stephen B. Linda ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia ◽  
Lymphoblastic Leukemia ◽  
Prognostic Significance ◽  
Oncology Group ◽  
Free Survival ◽  
Pediatric Oncology Group ◽  
Gene Status ◽  
Group Sex ◽  
Cure Rates ◽  
Standard Risk

Purpose To prospectively determine the prognostic significance of the TEL-AML1 fusion in children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Patients and Methods TEL gene status was determined for 926 patients with B-precursor ALL enrolled on the Pediatric Oncology Group ALinC 16 trials and patients were observed for a median time of 8 years. Results Rearrangements of the TEL gene were detected in 244 patients (26%). The estimated 5-year event-free survival rate (± SE) for patients with TEL rearrangements was 86% ± 2%, compared with 72% ± 2% for those with germline TEL (P < .0001). TEL rearrangements were associated with a superior outcome among patients with standard-risk ALL, high-risk ALL, and rapid early responses to therapy. In a multivariate analysis that included risk group, sex, and day 15 marrow status, TEL status was an independent predictor of outcome (P = .0002). Conclusion We conclude that TEL gene status should be incorporated into risk classification schemes and suggest that patients who have standard-risk features, the TEL-AML1 fusion, and rapid early responses to therapy, should be treated with antimetabolite-based therapy designed to maintain their high cure rates and avoid late effects.

Prognostic significance of sex in childhood B-precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia: a Pediatric Oncology Group Study.

1998 ◽  
Vol 16 (8) ◽  
pp. 2854-2863 ◽  
Author(s):  
J J Shuster ◽  
P Wacker ◽  
J Pullen ◽  
J Humbert ◽  
V J Land ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia ◽  
Pediatric Oncology ◽  
Lymphoblastic Leukemia ◽  
Prognostic Significance ◽  
Outcome Analysis ◽  
Oncology Group ◽  
Dna Index ◽  
Duration Of Symptoms ◽  
Pediatric Oncology Group ◽  
Wbc Count

PURPOSE In childhood B-precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), possible interactions among sex, time, and widely used prognostic factors (age, WBC count, and DNA index) were investigated for the first 5 years after diagnosis. PATIENTS AND METHODS All eligible patients aged 1 to less than 22 years, registered between February 1986 and September 1994 in two B-precursor ALL studies from the Pediatric Oncology Group (POG), were included in the analysis. Cutpoints for age (3.0, 5.0, and 10.0 years), WBC count (10, 50, and 100 x 10(9)/L), and DNA index (DI; 1.16) were defined. Four time periods after diagnosis (years 1, 2, 3, and 4 and 5 combined) were selected for the study of prognostic significance over time. The cut-off date for analysis was April 1996. RESULTS A total of 3,717 children (2,010 boys and 1,707 girls) were included in the outcome analysis. No major differences between the sexes were observed in age, duration of symptoms before registration, WBC count, hemoglobin level, platelet count, ploidy, presence of CNS disease at diagnosis, or induction failure rate. Event-free survival (EFS) differences between sexes became significantly different from 2 years following diagnosis. At 5 years, in all subsets analyzed, boys fared worse than girls, although not all differences were statistically significant. Major sex differences in EFS were observed in older children (10 to 22 years), in patients with intermediate WBC counts (10 to 50 x 10(9)/ L), and in children who fit both of these subgroups, in whom the 2-year EFS was almost 20% higher in girls than in boys, reaching a 38% difference at 5 years. CONCLUSION This study shows an outcome interaction among sex, time, and commonly used prognostic variables. The important sex difference observed at 2 and 5 years suggests that more intensive consolidation and/or maintenance therapy in some boys with B-precursor ALL should be investigated.

scholarly journals Case-Control Study Suggests a Favorable Impact of TEL Rearrangement in Patients With B-Lineage Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia Treated With Antimetabolite-Based Therapy: A Pediatric Oncology Group Study

Blood ◽  
1997 ◽  
Vol 89 (4) ◽  
pp. 1143-1146 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey E. Rubnitz ◽  
Jonathan J. Shuster ◽  
Vita J. Land ◽  
Michael P. Link ◽  
D. Jeanette Pullen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia ◽  
Pediatric Oncology ◽  
Leukocyte Count ◽  
Lymphoblastic Leukemia ◽  
Intensive Therapy ◽  
Oncology Group ◽  
Pediatric Oncology Group ◽  
B Lineage ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Gene Status

Abstract TEL gene rearrangement is the most common genetic lesion in pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), occurring in about 25% of B-lineage cases. We previously showed that, among patients treated on St Jude protocols, TEL rearrangement independently conferred an excellent prognosis. To extend these results to patients treated with antimetabolite-based therapy, we performed Southern blot analysis to determine the TEL gene status of 104 cases of B-lineage ALL treated on Pediatric Oncology Group 8602, matched on age, gender, and leukocyte count. There were 52 failures among the 77 patients with germline TEL, compared with only 8 failures among 27 patients in the rearranged group. Based on a two-sided logistic regression analysis, stratified for age (subdivided at 10 years), leukocyte count (subdivided at 50,000), and gender, the estimated odds of failing by 4 years in the germline TEL group is 5.4 times that of the rearranged TEL group, with 95% confidence from 1.9 to 15.6, two-sided P = .0009. Thus, the presence of a rearranged TEL gene is also associated with an improved survival among patients treated with antimetabolite-based therapy. Our results indicate that all newly diagnosed ALL patients should be screened for TEL gene rearrangements and suggest that these patients are candidates for less intensive therapy.

scholarly journals Frequency and prognostic significance of HRX rearrangements in infant acute lymphoblastic leukemia: a Pediatric Oncology Group study

Blood ◽  
1994 ◽  
Vol 84 (2) ◽  
pp. 570-573 ◽  
Author(s):  
JE Rubnitz ◽  
MP Link ◽  
JJ Shuster ◽  
AJ Carroll ◽  
N Hakami ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia ◽  
Pediatric Oncology ◽  
Lymphoblastic Leukemia ◽  
Cdna Probe ◽  
Prognostic Significance ◽  
High Rate ◽  
Chromosome Band ◽  
Oncology Group ◽  
Molecular Abnormalities ◽  
Pediatric Oncology Group

Abstract chromosome band 11q23, the location of the HRX gene, is a site of recurrent translocations in human malignancies. Infants with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) commonly have 11q23 translocations and have an especially poor prognosis despite intensive chemotherapy. We analyzed 96 cases of infant ALL treated on three consecutive Pediatric Oncology Group protocols to determine the frequency and prognostic significance of molecular rearrangements of HRX. Overall, 78 cases (81%) had HRX rearrangements detected by Southern blot analysis performed with a single HRX cDNA probe, whereas 18 cases (19%) had germline HRX. Of the 78 cases with HRX rearrangements, only 50 had abnormalities of 11q23 detected cytogenetically. Molecular abnormalities of HRX were associated with early treatment failure and a very poor outcome. Estimated event-free survival for patients with HRX rearrangements was 19% (SE, 7%) at 3 years, compared with 46% (SE, 17%) for patients with germline HRX (P = .033 by the two-sided logrank test). Therefore, infants with ALL and molecular abnormalities of HRX represent a group with an extremely high rate of failure who clearly need innovative or experimental treatment. Furthermore, cytogenetic analysis alone failed to detected 36% of HRX rearrangements, suggesting that molecular analysis be performed on all infants with ALL to identify this group of high-risk patients.

scholarly journals Prognostic Significance of Fluorescence Intensity of Surface Marker Expression in Childhood B-Precursor Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. A Pediatric Oncology Group Study

Blood ◽  
1997 ◽  
Vol 89 (11) ◽  
pp. 3960-3966 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael J. Borowitz ◽  
Jonathan Shuster ◽  
Andrew J. Carroll ◽  
Michael Nash ◽  
A. Thomas Look ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Risk Factors ◽  
Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia ◽  
Pediatric Oncology ◽  
Fluorescence Intensity ◽  
Lymphoblastic Leukemia ◽  
Prognostic Significance ◽  
Antigen Expression ◽  
Oncology Group ◽  
Color Flow ◽  
Pediatric Oncology Group

Abstract This report describes the prognostic significance of the intensity of surface membrane antigen expression in a series of 1,231 children older than 1 year with newly diagnosed B-precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) treated on Pediatric Oncology Group (POG) treatment protocols. All patients had dual-color flow cytometric immunophenotyping performed at a central reference laboratory with a standard panel of monoclonal antibodies. The flow cytometers used in the study were calibrated with a standard fluorescence microparticle that permitted conversion of relative fluorescence channels to standard units of mean equivalents of soluble fluorochrome (MESF). In univariate analysis, fluorescence intensity of CD45 and CD20 was significantly associated with event-free survival (EFS), whereas other markers showed no significant correlation with outcome. Patients whose blasts were greater than the 75th percentile of intensity for CD45 (corresponding to 18,000 MESF units with CD45-FITC, or about 8% of the intensity of normal lymphocytes) fared significantly worse than those with lower-density CD45, and those whose blasts were greater than the 25th percentile of intensity for CD20 (corresponding to 17,900 MESF units with CD20-PE) had a poorer EFS. The intensity of both CD45 and CD20 was independently correlated with outcome. There was no significant correlation between intensity of expression of either antigen and traditional clinical risk factors, ploidy, or t(9; 22) or t(1; 19). All patients with t(4; 11) had CD45 intensity greater than the 75th percentile, but CD45 intensity retained its prognostic significance after adjusting for t(4; 11). In multivariate analysis, both CD45 intensity greater than the 75th percentile and CD20 intensity greater than the 25th percentile were significantly correlated with poor outcome independently of previously reported poor prognostic factors including National Cancer Institute (NCI) risk group, ploidy, trisomies of 4 and 10, and adverse translocations including t(1; 19), t(9; 22), and t(4; 11). We conclude that in childhood B-precursor ALL, the intensity of expression of CD20 and CD45 provides prognostic information not available from simple consideration of antigen expression as positive or negative, and adds to that obtained from traditional clinical and biologic risk factors.

scholarly journals Escalating intravenous methotrexate improves event-free survival in children with standard-risk acute lymphoblastic leukemia: a report from the Children's Oncology Group

Blood ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 118 (2) ◽  
pp. 243-251 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yousif Matloub ◽  
Bruce C. Bostrom ◽  
Stephen P. Hunger ◽  
Linda C. Stork ◽  
Anne Angiolillo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Overall Survival ◽  
Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia ◽  
High Risk ◽  
Lymphoblastic Leukemia ◽  
Oncology Group ◽  
Event Free Survival ◽  
Free Survival ◽  
Cancer Group ◽  
Leucovorin Rescue ◽  
Standard Risk

Abstract Children's Cancer Group-1991 selected 2 components from the Children's Cancer Group studies shown to be effective in high-risk acute lymphoblastic leukemia and examined them in children with National Cancer Institute standard-risk acute B-precursor lymphoblastic leukemia. These were (1) vincristine and escalating IV methotrexate (MTX) without leucovorin rescue during the interim maintenance (IM) phases and (2) addition of a second delayed intensification (DI) phase. Eligible patients (n = 2078) were randomly assigned to regimens containing either oral (PO) MTX, PO mercaptopurine, dexamethasone, and vincristine or IV MTX during IM phases, and regimens with either single DI or double DI. Five-year event-free survival (EFS) and overall survival for patients on the PO MTX arms were 88.7% ± 1.4% and 96% ± 0.9% versus 92.6% ± 1.2% and 96.5% ± 0.8% for those on the IV MTX arms (P = .009, P = .66). Five-year EFS and overall survival for patients who received single DI were 90.9% ± 1.3% and 97.1% ± 0.8% versus 90.5% ± 1.3% and 95.4% ± 3.8% for those who received double DI (P = .71, P = .12). No advantage was found for a second DI; however, replacement of PO MTX, PO mercaptopurine, vincristine, and dexamethasone during IM with vincristine and escalating IV MTX improved EFS.

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