Has MRD graduated from its adolescence in ALL?

In this issue of Blood, Ribera et al(1) demonstrate that in adolescent and young adult (AYA) patients with Philadelphia chromosome-negative acute lymphoblastic leukemia (Ph- ALL) who present with high-risk features, the depth of response to initial therapy, as measured by measurable residual disease (MRD), is a powerful and clinically relevant predictive tool. The authors show that even high-risk patients who achieve MRD negativity may be able to forego allogeneic hematopoietic transplantation without impairing their chances of long-term survival.

Automated summary

In adolescent and young adult patients with Philadelphia chromosome-negative acute lymphoblastic leukemia (Ph-ALL) presenting high-risk features, the depth of response to initial therapy measured by measurable residual disease (MRD) is a powerful predictive tool, potentially allowing high-risk patients to forgo allogeneic hematopoietic transplantation without compromising long-term survival.