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  • Kim, Rathana; Bergugnat, Hugo; Pastoret, Cédric; Pasquier, Florence; Raffoux, Emmanuel; Larcher, Lise; Passet, Marie; Grardel, Nathalie; Delabesse, Eric; Kubetzko, Susanne; Caye-Eude, Aurélie; Meyer, Claus; Marschalek, Rolf; Lafage-Pochitaloff, Marine; Thiebaut-Bertrand, Anne; Balsat, Marie; Escoffre-Barbe, Martine; Blum, Sabine; Baumann, Michael; Banos, Anne; Straetmans, Nicole; Gallego-Hernanz, Maria-Pilar; Chalandon, Yves; Graux, Carlos; Soulier, Jean; Leguay, Thibaut; Hunault, Mathilde; Huguet, Françoise; Lhéritier, Véronique; Dombret, Hervé; Boissel, Nicolas; Clappier, Emmanuelle

    Blood, 11/2023, Volume: 142, Issue: 21
    Journal Article

    KMT2A-rearranged (KMT2A-r) B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia (BCP-ALL) is widely recognized as a high-risk leukemia in both children and adults. However, there is a paucity of data on adults treated in recent protocols, and the optimal treatment strategy for these patients is still a matter of debate. In this study, we set out to refine the prognosis of adult KMT2A-r BCP-ALL treated with modern chemotherapy regimen and investigate the prognostic impact of comutations and minimal residual disease (MRD). Of 1091 adult patients with Philadelphia-negative BCP-ALL enrolled in 3 consecutive trials from the Group for Research on Adult Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (GRAALL), 141 (12.9%) had KMT2A-r, with 5-year cumulative incidence of relapse (CIR) and overall survival (OS) rates of 40.7% and 53.3%, respectively. Molecular profiling highlighted a low mutational burden in this subtype, reminiscent of infant BCP-ALL. However, the presence of TP53 and/or IKZF1 alterations defined a subset of patients with significantly poorer CIR (69.3% vs 36.2%; P = .001) and OS (28.1% vs 60.7%; P = .006) rates. Next, we analyzed the prognostic implication of MRD measured after induction and first consolidation, using both immunoglobulin (IG) or T-cell receptor (TR) gene rearrangements and KMT2A genomic fusion as markers. In approximately one-third of patients, IG/TR rearrangements were absent or displayed clonal evolution during the disease course, compromising MRD monitoring. In contrast, KMT2A-based MRD was highly reliable and strongly associated with outcome, with early good responders having an excellent outcome (3-year CIR, 7.1%; OS, 92.9%). Altogether, our study reveals striking heterogeneity in outcomes within adults with KMT2A-r BCP-ALL and provides new biomarkers to guide risk-based therapeutic stratification.