Loss of the Y chromosome predicts a high relapse risk in younger adult male patients with t(8;21) acute myeloid leukemia on high-dose cytarabine consolidation therapy: a retrospective multicenter study.

The prognostic significance of loss of the Y chromosome (LOY) in patients with t(8;21)(q22;q22) acute myeloid leukemia (AML) remains poorly understood. To investigate this issue, 226 younger adult male patients with t(8;21) AML from 15 Chinese hematology research centers were retrospectively evaluated, among which, 50.4% had LOY. In patients receiving high-dose cytarabine (HiDAC) consolidation therapy, LOY was associated with a significantly higher cumulative incidence of relapse (CIR, HR = 2.18, p = .048), worse relapse-free survival (RFS, HR = 2.39, p = .026), and worse but not significant overall survival (OS, HR = 2.71, p = .166). A multivariate analysis adjusted for age, WBC, KIT mutations, and minimal residual disease showed LOY to be an independent adverse prognostic factor for relapse in patients on HiDAC consolidation therapy. Our results suggest that LOY may be associated with a high relapse risk in t(8;21) AML patients receiving HiDAC therapy during consolidation.