Philadelphia positive acute leukaemia with minor breakpoint cluster rearrangement may be a stem cell disease.
The biology of Philadelphia chromosome positive (Ph+) acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) is the subject of much interest. We present a case of Ph+ ALL with a minor breakpoint cluster (mBCR) rearrangement who subsequently relapsed with Ph+ mBCR+ acute myeloid leukaemia and later with Ph+ mBCR+ acute stem cell leukaemia. This case provides further evidence that Ph+ ALL with a mBCR rearrangement may arise from a pluripotent stem cell with similar potential to that of chronic granulocytic leukaemia to undergo blastic crises with differing lineage characteristics.
Jackson
G H
GH
Department of Haematology, Royal Victoria Infirmary, Newcastle upon Tyne.
Middleton
P
P
Prince
R
R
Bown
N
N
Kernahan
J
J
Reid
M M
MM
D000208:Acute Disease; D000293:Adolescent; D001752:Blast Crisis / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D015321:Gene Rearrangement / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D016130:Immunophenotyping; D015464:Leukemia, Myelogenous, Chronic, BCR-ABL Positive / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology; D005810:Multigene Family / Q000235:genetics*; D054198:Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology; D011505:Protein-Tyrosine Kinases; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D051562:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcr; D012008:Recurrence; D013234:Stem Cells / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology
D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins; D011505:Protein-Tyrosine Kinases; C496613:BCR protein, human; D051562:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcr