Research progress of Ph-like acute lymphoblastic leukemia

Abstract

Ph-like acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is a subtype of B cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia (BCP ALL) with poor outcome that exhibits a gene expression profile similar to breakpoint cluster region-Abelson leukemia virus (BCR-ABL)1-positive ALL but lacks the BCR-ABL1 fusion protein. The gene abnormalities involve of cytokine signaling pathway, kinase signaling pathway, and B cell developmental transcription factors. Protein kinase inhibitors combined with chemotherapy might be applied in Ph-like ALL. The investigation of Ph-like ALL will contribute to precise risk stratification of BCP-ALL and targeted therapy. The research progress of Ph-like ALL will be introduced in this article, including epidemiology, susceptibility locus, gene variants, diagnosis, treatment and prognosis. Key words: Precursor B-cell lymphoblastic leukemia-lymphoma; Gene expression profiling; Protein kinase inhibitors; Prognosis