Pre-B-Cell Leukemia

Abstract

Large lymphoid cells containing small amounts of cytoplasmic IgM (cIgM) but undetectable surface immunoglobulin (sIg) have recently been recognized as precursors of B lymphocytes. They are a small, rapidly dividing pool of normal marrow lymphoblasts. Since lymphoblasts in most childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemias lack sIg and other conventional B-lymphocyte and T-lymphocyte markers, we examined the possibility that some leukemias represent "pre-B"-cell neoplasms.