[Evaluation of the distribution spectrum of bone marrow granulocyte-CFU and its prognostic significance in smouldering leukemia].

We have studied bone marrow CFU-GM growth behaviour in agar in 7 patients with smouldering Leukemia (SL) in order to test prognostic value of CFU-GM assay to identify patients at high risk of progression to acute nonlymphocytic leukemia (AnLL). By means of the criterion of "topographic scoring at two sequential times", we have estimated bone marrow CFU-GM percentage distribution spectrum, a parameter independent of aggregate absolute number. Basing on our growth data, we have distinguished SL with low colony growth and SL with high cluster growth without colonies. If evaluated quantitatively, these data are not correlated with clinical evolution; if evaluated qualitatively, as percentage distribution spectrum, they are correlated with rapid progression to AnLL. With this work we show that bone marrow CFU-GM distribution spectrum is a suitable parameter to study the disorder of granulocytic line in SL.