Hematology: leukemias, lymphomas, myeloproliferative disorders
Pathology · MBBS
Study notes
A 45-year-old's routine blood shows WBC 150,000 with the Philadelphia chromosome. This is CML — chronic myeloid leukemia: BCR-ABL fusion (Philadelphia chromosome) drives myeloid overproduction. Once fatal in years, now controlled by imatinib — a tyrosine kinase inhibitor designed for BCR-ABL — turning CML into a chronic manageable disease. It is targeted therapy's founding victory: read the mutation, drug the mutation. Contrast acute leukemias (ALL/AML) — blast storms needing intensive chemo, but ALL in children is now ~90% curable.
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