title: Diagnostic features and survival in typical and prolymphocytoid variants of chronic lymphocytic leukemia.
abstract: Diagnostic features were evaluated with regards to survival in 203 cases of typical and prolymphocytoid chronic lymphocytic leukemia. Excluding 27 (13 per cent) patients with second malignancies, survival analyses indicated that the prognostic factors with greatest significance were age at presentation (less than 65 years and 65 years or more: p = 0.0004), proportions of prolymphocytoid cells (less than 10 per cent and 10 per cent or more: p less than 0.0001 age corrected) and surface immunoglobulin (SIg) density (weak and more than weak: p = 0.001 age corrected). In contrast, sex, absolute numbers of prolymphocytoid cells, SIg light chain type and FMC7 expression were not prognostically significant. These observations suggest that the recognition and delineation of prolymphocytoid CLL variants by morphological and immunophenotypic criteria, although important in diagnostic terms, may have less relevance with respect to prognosis and patient management.
authors.affiliation: Department of Haematology, Cookridge Hospital, Leeds, U.K.
authors.forename: C S
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Scott
authors.forename: A N
authors.initials: AN
authors.lastname: Stark
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Head
authors.forename: B E
authors.initials: BE
authors.lastname: Roberts
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015451:Leukemia, Lymphocytic, Chronic, B-Cell / Q000276:immunology / Q000401:mortality* / Q000473:pathology; D015463:Leukemia, Prolymphocytic / Q000276:immunology / Q000401:mortality* / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010641:Phenotype; D011379:Prognosis