M. Gallego et al., VARIANT T(821) REARRANGEMENTS IN ACUTE MYELOBLASTIC-LEUKEMIA OF CHILDHOOD, Cancer genetics and cytogenetics, 75(2), 1994, pp. 139-144
In a collaborative cytogenetic analysis of blast cells from 638 childr
en with acute myeloid leukemia, 74(11.6%) of the patients had the typi
cal t(8;21) (q22;q22), while seven (1.1%) had complex variant transloc
ations also involving 8q22 and 21q22 as well as a variable chromosome.
In each case with a complex rearrangement, the myeloid leukemic cells
contained Auer rods and were classified as M2 in the French-American-
British (FAB) system. These seven children had a median age of 14 year
s (range, 7.3-18.9 years), a median initial leukocyte count of 9.1 x 1
0(9)/L (range, 2.5-142.2 x 10(9)/L), and have survived leukemia free f
or a median of 23 months (1-41 months) after attaining complete remiss
ion. The variable chromosomes in these seven cases -1, 2, 7, 12, 13, 1
5, and 17- appeared to be randomly involved. The clinico-biologic feat
ures of our cases with a variant t(8;21) are consistent with those of
the published cases with the standard t(8;21), and support the hypothe
sis that the critical genetic alteration produced by the t(8;21) is lo
cated on the derivative 8.