Clinical significance of FLT3 in leukemia

FLT3 is a class III receptor tyrosine kinase together with KIT, FMS and PDGFR. FLT3 mutations were first reported as internal tandem duplication (FLT3/ITD) of the juxtamembrane domain-coding sequence, and subsequently as a missense mutation of D835 (FLT3/KDM) within a kinase domain. Furthermore, point mutations, deletions, and insertions in the codons surrounding D835 have also been found. FLT3/ITD and FLT3/KDM occur in 15% to 35% and 5% to 10%, respectively, of patients with AML. FLT3 mutations are, therefore, the most frequent genetic alterations so far reported in AML. Several large-scale studies have confirmed that FLT3/ITD is strongly associated with leukocytosis and a poor prognosis. Although the clinical significance of FLT3/KDM is controversial, the meta-analysis suggests its adverse effect on the outcome. FLT3/ITD is far less common in patients with ALL, whereas FLT3/KDM is recurrently found in patients with ALL, especially in those harboring an MLL gene rearrangement or hyperdiploidy. The overexpression of FLT3 transcripts has been demonstrated in a proportion of the AML patients without FLT3 mutations, which are associated with a poor prognosis for overall survival. Routine screening of FLT3 mutations is recommended to stratify the patients into distinct risk groups, while the optimal treatment strategy for patients with FLT3 mutations should be further evaluated.