Translocations involving 12p in acute myeloid leukemia: association with prior myelodysplasia and exposure to mutagenic agents.

Abstract

Six cases of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) with translocations involving 12p are described. The patients were one child age 7 yrs and five adults with an age range of 20-66 yrs (median 46 yrs). In two patients AML followed treatment for acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), in one case after 11 years disease-free survival. Of the remaining four patients, two had been occupationally exposed to possible mutagens and three had a previous myelodysplastic phase. Two patients achieved complete remission; survival for the six cases was between 1 and 24 months (median 6.5 months). The breakpoints in 12p occurred in p11, p12, and p13, indicating that several sites are important in these rearrangements, and it is suggested that t(12;17)(p11;q11) is a new nonrandom abnormality in AML.