Short telomere length is associated with NOTCH1/SF3B1/TP53 aberrations and poor outcome in newly diagnosed chronic lymphocytic leukemia patients

Summary, in English

Most previous studies on telomere length (TL) in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) are based on referral cohorts including a high proportion of aggressive cases. Here, the impact of TL was analyzed in a population-based cohort of newly diagnosed CLL (n=265) and in relation to other prognostic markers. Short telomeres were particularly associated with high-risk genetic markers, such as NOTCH1, SF3B1, or TP53 aberrations, and predicted a short time to treatment (TTT) and overall survival (OS) (both P<0.0001). TL was an independent prognostic factor and subdivided patients with otherwise good-prognostic features (e.g., mutated IGHV genes, favorable cytogenetics) into subgroups with different outcome. Furthermore, in follow-up samples (n=119) taken 5-8 years after diagnosis, TL correlated well with TL at diagnosis and remained unaffected by treatment. Altogether, these novel data indicate that short TL already at diagnosis is associated with poor outcome in CLL and that TL can be measured at later stages of the disease. Am. J. Hematol. 88:647-651, 2013. (c) 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

• Author: Larry Mansouri; Pawel Grabowski; Sofie Degerman; Ulrika Svenson; Rebeqa Gunnarsson; Nicola Cahill; Karin Ekstrom Smedby; Christian Geisler; Gunnar Juliusson; Goran Roos; Richard Rosenquist
• Department/s: Stem Cell Center; StemTherapy: National Initiative on Stem Cells for Regenerative Therapy
• Publishing year: 2013
• Language: English
• Pages: 647-651
• Publication/Series: American Journal of Hematology
• Volume: 88
• Issue: 8
• Links: http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ajh.23466
• Document type: Journal article
• Publisher: John Wiley & Sons Inc.
• Topic: Hematology
• Status: Published
• ISBN/ISSN/Other: ISSN: 0361-8609