A Case of Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia with PML/RARA Translocation Showing Familial t(9;15)(q34;q22)

ABSTRACT

We report the unusual case of an APL patient with a familial t(9;15)(q34;q22) and acquired t(15;17) (q22;q21). This is unique in that the patient had a constitutional abnormality with the same breakpoints as those observed in the tumor clone from the APL. It is unclear if the breakpoint, 15q22, in the constitutional aberration influenced the induction of the PML/RARA translocation in the APL. If a specific translocation in a patient with leukemia does not go away with clinical improvement, a congenital or familial chromosomal abnormality should be considered. Additional patients with similar findings are needed to understand the pathogenesis of these events.