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Stress lysis in childhood leukemia
Author(s) -
Adamson Peter C.
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
pediatric blood and cancer
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.116
H-Index - 105
eISSN - 1545-5017
pISSN - 1545-5009
DOI - 10.1002/pbc.20764
Subject(s) - medicine , allopurinol , tumor lysis syndrome , leukemia , chemotherapy , white blood cell , lymphoblastic leukemia , acute leukemia , oncology , gastroenterology
Children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) can experience a decrease in their white blood count (WBC) prior to chemotherapy, a phenomenon commonly attributed to the administration of allopurinol and hydration. We reviewed the records of 20 children with newly diagnosed ALL prior to the administration of allopurinol and found that 80% of patients experienced a decrease in their WBC (median decrease 14,000/mm 3 ) in the less than 24‐hr interval between evaluation at the referring center and admission to our hospital ( P = 0.002). The basis for this often‐observed phenomenon appears to be that leukemic cells rapidly lyse in response to the stress‐induced release of endogenous corticosteroids. Pediatr Blood Cancer 2008;50:137–139. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.