title: Internal tandem duplications of Flt3 gene (Flt3/ITD) predicts a poor post-remission outcome in adult patients with acute non-promyelocytic leukemia.
abstract: Despite progress in AML therapy, most patients eventually relapse, even the ones with normal or favorable karyotype. Since survival is poor once relapse occurs, new genetic tools above karyotype at diagnosis are needed to predict leukemia free survival. Recently, Flt3/ITD has been reported as an independent marker for clinical outcome in most studies concerning adult AML patients. To assess the prognostic relevance of activating mutations of Flt3, pretreatment samples of 100 not-M3 AML patients, all of them subjected to an intensive chemotherapy regimen, were analyzed for Flt3/ITD; 25/100 patients had one or more Flt3-ITD. Flt3/ITD patients had higher WBC count (P = 0.005), a lower incidence of a preceding MDS (P = 0.004) and most of them had a normal karyotype. Flt3/ITD had no impact on CR achievement while karyotype remained the most powerful prognostic factor (HR 2.8 95% CI 1.2 6.3). However, post-remission outcome was significantly worsened by the presence of Flt3/ITD. Median RFS of the Flt3/ITD patients was 5 vs. 27 months compared to the patients with wild-type Flt3 (P = 0.0002); moreover, Flt3/ITD patients had a significantly poorer post-remission survival (11 vs. 38 months, P = 0.01). On multivariate analysis, the presence of Flt3-ITD significantly affected relapse free survival and post-remission survival (HR 3.1 and 2.1, respectively). Thus, post-remission outcome highly depends on Flt3 status. Flt3 mutations identify patients at high risk of relapse, who should prospectively receive, according to age, either more aggressive or alternative therapeutic approaches.
authors.affiliation: Department of Hematology, University and Hospital Careggi, 50139 Florence, Italy. s.ciolli@dfc.unifi.it
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ciolli
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Vannucchi
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Leoni
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Nozzoli
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Longo
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Salati
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pancrazzi
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Bianchi
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Gigli
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bosi
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D005260:Female; D020131:Genes, Duplicate / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D007951:Leukemia, Myeloid / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000235:genetics* / Q000628:therapy; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D020794:Receptor Protein-Tyrosine Kinases / Q000235:genetics*; D012008:Recurrence; D012074:Remission Induction; D015996:Survival Rate; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D051941:fms-Like Tyrosine Kinase 3
chemical_list: D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins; C497970:FLT3 protein, human; D020794:Receptor Protein-Tyrosine Kinases; D051941:fms-Like Tyrosine Kinase 3