Ig V Gene Mutation Status and CD38 Expression As Novel Prognostic Indicators in Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia

Abstract
Cellular immunophenotypic studies were performed on a cohort of randomly selected IgM+ B-chronic lymphocytic leukemia (B-CLL) cases for which Ig VH and VL gene sequences were available. The cases were categorized based on V gene mutation status and CD38 expression and analyzed for treatment history and survival. The B-CLL cases could be divided into 2 groups. Those patients with unmutated V genes displayed higher percentages of CD38+ B-CLL cells (≥30%) than those with mutated V genes that had lower percentages of CD38+ cells (