World Health Organization classification of the acute leukemias and myelodysplastic syndrome.

Under the auspices of the European Association of Hematopathologists and the Society for Hematopathology, 100 hematopathologists and clinicians have met together and in subcommittees over a 5-year period. The model used was that developed by the International Lymphoma Study Group, which used morphologic, immunologic, and genetic features. It resulted in the revised European-American Lymphoma classification. The newly proposed leukemia classification uses a similar format and eliminates purely morphologic subtypes that have no current clinical relevance. As with all consensus proposals, these classifications must withstand criticism and debate by potential users.