title: Patients With a History of Chemotherapy and Isolated del(20q) With Minimal Myelodysplasia Have an Indolent Course.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Isolated deletion (20q) is relatively common in myeloid neoplasms and has been rarely reported in cases of therapy-related myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS). Our aim was to characterize cases of isolated del(20q) in bone marrow biopsy specimens from patients with a history of chemotherapy with morphologic findings insufficient for a diagnosis of MDS.
  
  
  METHODS
  In this retrospective study from one institution, we identified 22 patients with isolated del(20q) and no or minimal dysplasia and evaluated clinical and pathologic characteristics.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Eleven of the patients had a history of chemotherapy for mostly lymphoproliferative disorders. There were no statistically significant differences in peripheral blood or bone marrow features between patients with a history of chemotherapy and those without. Three patients with a history of chemotherapy had died at last follow-up; cause of death was recurrent nonmyeloid neoplasm. None of the patients with a history of chemotherapy subsequently developed a high-grade myeloid neoplasm, whereas one of the patients who had not received prior chemotherapy developed refractory anemia with excess blasts 2.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The presence of del(20q) as an isolated bone marrow cytogenetic abnormality in the absence of morphologic findings sufficient for a diagnosis of acute myeloid leukemia, myeloproliferative neoplasm, or MDS portends an indolent clinical course, regardless of previous exposure to chemotherapy.
authors.affiliation: From the Departments of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology.
authors.forename: Elizabeth L
authors.initials: EL
authors.lastname: Courville
authors.affiliation: From the Departments of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology.
authors.forename: Charanjeet
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Singh
authors.affiliation: From the Departments of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology.
authors.forename: Sophia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yohe
authors.affiliation: From the Departments of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology.
authors.forename: Michael A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Linden
authors.affiliation: From the Departments of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology.
authors.forename: Kaveh
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Naemi
authors.affiliation: From the Departments of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Berger
authors.affiliation: Medicine, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis.
authors.forename: Celalettin
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ustun
authors.affiliation: From the Departments of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology.
authors.forename: Robert W
authors.initials: RW
authors.lastname: McKenna
authors.affiliation: From the Departments of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology dolan009@umn.edu.
authors.forename: Michelle
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Dolan
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000009:adverse effects; D001853:Bone Marrow / Q000473:pathology; D002872:Chromosome Deletion; D002890:Chromosomes, Human, Pair 20 / Q000235:genetics*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D017404:In Situ Hybridization, Fluorescence; D053208:Kaplan-Meier Estimate; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009190:Myelodysplastic Syndromes / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents
keywords: Chemotherapy; Isolated deletion 20q; Myelodysplastic syndrome; Myeloid neoplasm; Therapy related; del(20q)