Do short telomeres shorten CLL survival?
Thomas S. Lin THE OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY Roos and colleagues demonstrate that telomere length correlates with known biological prognostic factors in CLL and may independently predict clinical outcome. These findings suggest that telomerase may be a useful pharmacological target in CLL. Patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) exhibit greatly variable clinical behavior; some patients do not require therapy for years or decades, whereas others progress rapidly, respond poorly to therapy, and die within a few years. Over the past decade, significant advances in our understanding of the prognostic importance of cytogenetic abnormalities and other biological factors in the natural history of CLL have greatly improved clinicians’ ability to identify patients who are likely to do poorly and may require more aggressive treatment. This risk stratification provides essential information on the percentage of high-risk patients in a clinical protocol, and is critical for interpretation of c
