Do transcriptionally silent BCR-ABL cells persist in CML patients in molecular remission after stem cell transplantation?
2001
Abstract
The only current curative treatment for chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) is allogeneic stem cell transplantation (SCT). However, relapses occur in 10-30% of patients transplanted in chronic phase and even more frequently in patients transplanted in later phases of CML.
As relapses can appear after long-term molecular remissions detected by nested RT-PCR for BCR-ABL transcript, the question arises of what isthe origin of cells whose activation results in a relapse. A rational explanation seems to be the persistence of cells with an unexpressed BCR-ABL gene.
The question of existence of such transcriptionally silent BCR-ABL cells was addressed by several authors with contradictory conclusions.