Herein, we present cytogenetic and molecular analysis of a case of B-ALL in a 16-year-old Caucasian boy with t(3;9) FOXP1-ABL1 rearrangement and concurrent loss of IKZF1, CDKN2A, and RB1 gene loci, meeting WHO criteria for Ph-like ALL.
BCR-ABL1-like B-lymphoblastic leukemia/lymphoma (BCR-ABL1-like ALL or Ph-like ALL) is a neoplastic proliferation of lymphoblasts that has a gene expression profile similar to that of B-ALL with t(9;22)(q34.1;q11.2) BCR-ABL1, but lacks that gene fusion.
Four patients presented with B-lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL), and of them, two patients with t(8;9)(p22;p24.1) were proven to be B-lymphoblastic crisis of MPN; and the other two cases with t(9p24;v) both were de novo B-ALL, BCR-ABL1-like (Ph-like).
In summary, we describe a complex clonal evolution pattern in Ph-like ALL and identified a novel <i>PDGFRB</i> point mutation that drives leukemia relapse after ABL TKI treatment.
Clinically, the BCR/ABL1-like cases identified by the BCR/ABL1-like predictor achieved a lower rate of complete remission (P = 0·014) and a worse event-free survival (P = 0·0009) compared to non-BCR/ABL1-like ALL.
Among the remaining patients, using reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction or transcriptome sequencing, we identified targetable ABL-class fusions (<i>ABL1</i>, <i>ABL2</i>, <i>CSF1R</i>, and <i>PDGFRB</i>) in 14.1%, <i>EPOR</i> rearrangements or <i>JAK2</i> fusions in 8.8%, alterations activating other JAK-STAT signaling genes (<i>IL7R</i>, <i>SH2B3</i>, <i>JAK1</i>) in 6.3% or other kinases (<i>FLT3</i>, <i>NTRK3</i>, <i>LYN</i>) in 4.6%, and mutations involving the Ras pathway (<i>KRAS</i>, <i>NRAS</i>, <i>NF1</i>, <i>PTPN11</i>) in 6% of those with Ph-like ALL.
Although "paired box 5" (PAX5)-related fusion genes are well documented in childhood B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), these types of fusion with the exception of PAX5-JAK2 are rarely seen in patients with gene expression profiles similar to those of BCR-ABL1 (Philadelphia)-positive ALL (Ph-like ALL).
The complete remission rate was 100% among both Ph-like ALL patients (n=19) and the "remaining BCP-ALL" cases (n=40), i.e. patients negative for BCR-ABL1 and KMT2A-rearrangements and the Ph-like subtype.
Genetic alterations of IKZF1 encoding the lymphoid transcription factor IKAROS are a hallmark of high-risk B-progenitor acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), such as BCR-ABL1-positive (Ph+) and Ph-like ALL, and are associated with poor outcome even in the era of contemporary chemotherapy incorporating tyrosine kinase inhibitors.
Next-generation sequencing and/or analysis of genes known to be altered in B-ALL were performed in patients with BCR-ABL1–likeALL who had available material.
We performed transcriptome and whole genome sequencing on 15 cases of Ph-like ALL and identified rearrangements involving ABL1, JAK2, PDGFRB, CRLF2, and EPOR, activating mutations of IL7R and FLT3, and deletion of SH2B3, which encodes the JAK2-negative regulator LNK.
Four patients presented with B-lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL), and of them, two patients with t(8;9)(p22;p24.1) were proven to be B-lymphoblastic crisis of MPN; and the other two cases with t(9p24;v) both were de novo B-ALL, BCR-ABL1-like (Ph-like).
BCR-ABL1-like B-lymphoblastic leukemia/lymphoma (BCR-ABL1-like ALL or Ph-like ALL) is a neoplastic proliferation of lymphoblasts that has a gene expression profile similar to that of B-ALL with t(9;22)(q34.1;q11.2)BCR-ABL1, but lacks that gene fusion.
Clinically, the BCR/ABL1-like cases identified by the BCR/ABL1-like predictor achieved a lower rate of complete remission (P = 0·014) and a worse event-free survival (P = 0·0009) compared to non-BCR/ABL1-like ALL.
The precise pathogenesis of BCR-ABL1 like ALL is still to be defined, but they are mainly characterized by the activation of constitutive signal transduction pathways due to chimeric TKs different from BCR-ABL1.
The complete remission rate was 100% among both Ph-like ALL patients (n=19) and the "remaining BCP-ALL" cases (n=40), i.e. patients negative forBCR-ABL1 and KMT2A-rearrangements and the Ph-like subtype.
Although "paired box 5" (PAX5)-related fusion genes are well documented in childhood B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), these types of fusion with the exception of PAX5-JAK2 are rarely seen in patients with gene expression profiles similar to those of BCR-ABL1 (Philadelphia)-positive ALL (Ph-like ALL).
Genetic alterations of IKZF1 encoding the lymphoid transcription factor IKAROS are a hallmark of high-risk B-progenitor acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), such as BCR-ABL1-positive (Ph+) and Ph-like ALL, and are associated with poor outcome even in the era of contemporary chemotherapy incorporating tyrosine kinase inhibitors.
Next-generation sequencing and/or analysis of genes known to be altered in B-ALL were performed in patients with BCR-ABL1–likeALL who had available material.
In particular, chromosomal rearrangements resulting in the overexpression of cytokine receptor-like factor 2 (CRLF2) occur in 50% of Ph-like ALL cases.
The germline variant at rs3824662 in GATA3 is a risk locus for Philadelphia-like acute lymphoblastic leukemia (Ph-like ALL), the biological subtype of B-cell precursor (BCP)-ALL defined by a distinct gene expression profile and the presence of specific somatic aberrations including rearrangements of CRLF2.
The critical gene, cytokine receptor-like factor 2 (CRLF2), is rearranged in 5-16% of B-ALL, comprising 50% of Philadelphia-like ALL and cooperates with genomic lesions in the Jak, Mapk and Ras signalling pathways.
Our findings show high frequency of Ph-like ALL in adults, an increased frequency of Ph-like ALL in adults of Hispanic ethnicity, significantly inferior outcomes of adult patients with Ph-like ALL, and significantly worse outcomes in the CRLF2<sup>+</sup> subset of Ph-like ALL.