Funding sources of the Unidad Nacional de Oncologia Pediátrica of Guatemala.

<p>The red area indicates funding from St. Jude Children's Research Hospital and the blue area funding from all other sources. An initial outlay of funds from St. Jude was subsequently leveraged into additional resources from both government and private donors. The creation of an independent fundraising organization (Fundación Ayúdame a Vivir, <a href="http://ayuvi.org.gt" target="_blank">http://ayuvi.org.gt</a>) was essential to this outcome. Similar successes may be possible in other settings; the role and best use of seed funding from HIC centers requires further investigation.</p

Expression of Ik6 and Ik8 Isoforms and Their Association with Relapse and Death in Mexican Children with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia

<div><p>Expression of the 6 and 8 dominant-negative Ikaros isoforms in pediatric patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia has been associated with a high risk of relapse and death; due to these isoforms disrupting the differentiation and proliferation of lymphoid cells. The aim of this study was to know the frequency of Ik6 and Ik8 in 113 Mexican ALL-children treated within the National Popular Medical Insurance Program to determine whether there was an association with relapse-free survival, event-free survival and overall survival, and to assess its usefulness in the initial stratification of patients. The expression of these isoforms was analyzed using specific primer sets and nested RT-PCR. The detected transcripts were classified according to the isoforms’s sizes reported. A non-expected band of 300 bp from one patient was analyzed by sequencing. Twenty-six patients expressed Ik6 and/or Ik8 and one of them expressed a variant of Ik8 denominated Ik8-deleted. Although the presence of them was not statistically associated with lower relapse free survival (<i>p</i> = 0.432), event free survival (<i>p</i> = 0.667) or overall survival (<i>p</i> = 0.531), inferior overall survival was observed in patients that expressed these isoforms and showed high or standard risk by age and white blood-cell count at diagnosis. Of the 26 patients Ik6+ and/or Ik8+, 14 did not present adverse events; from them 6 were exclusively Ik6+ and/or Ik8+, and 8 were positive for the other Ikaros isoforms (Ik1, Ik2, Ik5, Ik3A, Ik4, Ik4A, Ik7). In the patients studied, the expression of Ik6 and Ik8 did not constitute an independent prognostic factor for relapse or death related to disease; therefore, they could not be used in the initial risk stratification.</p></div

Risk analysis for clinical-biological characteristics and dominant-negative Ikaros isoforms expression.

<p><i>p</i> = Analyzed by Fisher exact test.</p><p>* = Statistically significant <i>p</i> value.</p><p>Risk analysis for clinical-biological characteristics and dominant-negative Ikaros isoforms expression.</p

Clinical-biological characteristics and Ikaros isoforms expression in ALL children and their association with relapse, death or prednisone response.

<p><i>p</i> = Analyzed by Fisher exact test.</p><p>* = Statistically significant <i>p</i> value.</p><p>Clinical-biological characteristics and Ikaros isoforms expression in ALL children and their association with relapse, death or prednisone response.</p

Table_1_Evidence of spatial clustering of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia cases in Greater Mexico City: report from the Mexican Inter-Institutional Group for the identification of the causes of childhood leukemia.xlsx

BackgroundA heterogeneous geographic distribution of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) cases has been described, possibly, related to the presence of different environmental factors. The aim of the present study was to explore the geographical distribution of childhood ALL cases in Greater Mexico City (GMC).MethodsA population-based case-control study was conducted. Children ResultsA total of 1054 cases with ALL were analyzed. Of these, 408 (38.7%) were distributed across eight SCs detected. A relative risk of 1.61 (pConclusionsThe identification of SCs in certain regions of GMC suggest the possible role of environmental factors in the etiology of childhood ALL.</p