The development of the dual Janus kinase 1/2 (JAK1/2) inhibitor ruxolitinib for the treatment of myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPNs) has led to studies of ruxolitinib in other clinical contexts, including JAK-mutated acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL).
Activating mutations that target JAK2, as well as JAK1, or CRLF2 and IL7RA, two cytokine receptors with which the JAKs associate in lymphoid cells, have now been identified in a subset of pediatric patients diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), many of whom have a poor prognosis.
Here, we report activating mutations in the Janus kinases JAK1 (n = 3), JAK2 (n = 16), and JAK3 (n = 1) in 20 (10.7%) of 187 BCR-ABL1-negative, high-risk pediatric ALL cases.
Our findings implicate dysregulated JAK1 function in ALL, particularly of T cell origin, and point to this kinase as a target for the development of novel antileukemic drugs.