Is the scoring system an effective clinico-biological tool in myeloid antigen positive adult acute lymphoblastic leukemia?
INTRODUCTION: The classification and the clinical management of adult acute lymphoblastic leukemias (ALL) that co-express myeloid antigens (MyALL) remain controversial because of the confusion of terms and criteria to define these cases. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The characteristics of 112 adult ALL patients were reviewed. The scoring systems proposed by Catovsky and EGIL Group to classify MyALL were applied to qualify cases with score 0 (group I), 0.5-1.5 (group II) and 2 (group III). RESULTS: Forty-seven (42%) cases co-expressed MyAgs (group II: 29; group III: 18). A greater percentage of MyALL cases belonged to the earlier B and T subclasses. Ph+ incidence, WBC count and expression of CD34, CD45RA and CD25 were higher in group III. All patients received intensive therapy: out of these, 93 (83%) achieved CR. Although the response did not correlate significantly with the co-expression of MyAgs, the patients with the highest score had the lowest CR rate: 72, 83 and 86% in groups III, II a
