Two Cases of Philadelphia Chromosome-negative Essential Thrombocythemia Manifested bcr-abl Gene Rearrangement / 대한임상병리학회지

ABSTRACT

Discrepant results have been reported in terms of detecting bcr-abl transcripts in patients with essential thrombocythemia that are Philadelphia (Ph) chromosome-negative. We present two cases of Ph chromosome-negative essential thrombocythemia in whom bcr-abl gene rearrangement was detected. In the diagnosis of both cases, they lacked the splenomegaly, anemia and basophilia, and had high platelet counts (948X10(3)/L and 1,329X10(3)/microL, respectively) and normal leukocyte alkaline phosphatase (LAP) scores on admission without any evidence of inflammation, infection, or therapy. They lacked the Philadelphia chromosome characteristic of classical chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) and had b3a2 transcripts.