[HLA markers in leukemia patients].

The relationship of genes of the HLA system with leukemogenesis has been controversial for many years. However HLA antigens such as A2, B12 and DR7, have been found associated with prolonged survival in patients with acute leukemia. Recent studies have also shown an excess of shared HLA antigens (especially DR) among the parents of patients with acute leukemia. This phenomenon may possibly reflect the expression in patients of recessive immune response genes linked to the HLA complex; the role of such immune response genes in susceptibility or resistance to virus-induced leukemia has clearly been established in mice.