Molecular evidence for central nervous system involvement in children with newly diagnosed acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

Central nervous system (CNS) involvement in children with newly diagnosed acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) would have profound implication for the prognosis and accurate stratification of CNS prophylactic therapy. Using PCR technique with specific primers for V, D and J segments of TCRD gene, the pattern of TCRD gene rearrangements in bone marrow lymphoblasts and in cells from cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) have been investigated. The study involved 21 children at the time of diagnosis with B-lineage ALL. In nine of 21 patients incomplete TCRDVD gene rearrangement has been found in CSF cells, which was identical to that observed in bone marrow of the same children. It can be concluded that at least in 43 per cent of all analysed cases, there were signs of CNS involvement in newly diagnosed ALL patients.