Additional cytogenetic changes and previous genotoxic exposure predict unfavorable prognosis in myelodysplastic syndromes and acute myeloid leukemia with der(1;7)(q10;p10).

We analyzed 23 patients with myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) and acute myeloid leukemia (AML) showing a der(1;7)(q10;p10) [hereafter der(1;7)] to identify the exact predictive factor of this cytogenetic change. Eight (34.8%) patients, including six with MDS and two with AML patients, had a previous history of genotoxic exposure, especially radiation and/or antimetabolites. Patients with der(1;7) consisted of three groups: one third of patients had a previous history of genotoxic agents, one third had additional cytogenetic changes at the time of MDS/AML diagnosis without previous exposure history, and the remaining one third had neither a previous exposure history nor additional cytogenetic changes. The current study demonstrated that the poor outcome of MDS/AML with der(1;7) is caused by the high frequency of associated risk factors (i.e., previous history of genotoxic exposure, the presence of additional cytogenetic changes, or both). Identification of prognostic disadvantage might be required for applying the appropriate strategy in managing MDS/AML patients with rare der(1;7) abnormality.