MOLECULAR REMISSION AFTER ALLOGENEIC BONE-MARROW TRANSPLANTATION FOR CHRONIC LYMPHOCYTIC-LEUKEMIA

A 51-year-old man with previously treated CLL received an allogeneic s ex mismatched BMT after total body irradiation and high dose chemother apy. Residual disease was studied at phenotypic and molecular levels i ncluding Y chromosome DNA amplification by PCR assay. The patient was clinically disease-free 20 months after BMT with disappearance of the leukemic clone assessed by the most sensitive methods of detection. Lo ng-term follow-up is necessary to ascertain the relevance of Y DNA amp lification in predicting outcome in this patient.