SAN DIEGO -- A groundbreaking research study,[1] sequencing DNA samples from the Pre-MEASURE study[2] strongly indicates that the detection of residual FLT3 internal tandem duplication (ITD) mutations in the blood of adult subjects with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in first complete remission (CR) is associated with worse outcomes after post allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplant (HCT).

This follow-up study performed measurable residual disease (MRD) testing on DNA of 537 subjects with FLT3-ITD AML from the Pre-MEASURE study using Invivoscribe’s RUO FLT3 ITD MRD Assay kit and bioinformatics software. Its findings underscore the likely significance of residual FLT3-ITD in first CR in predicting relapse and mortality post-transplant.

A key finding from this research study was that AML subjects with residual FLT3-ITD detected prior to allogeneic HCT trended towards elevated risk of relapse and mortality post-transplant, with a dose-dependent correlation within this study population.

Dr. Hourigan, Director of the Virginia Tech FBRI Cancer Research Center in Washington, DC and Principal Investigator of the study, remarked, “This research underscores the value of pre-transplant testing for residual FLT3-ITD in adults with AML. The association of MRD test results with post-transplant outcomes opens up the potential of refining treatment strategies to improve survival.”

Moving forward, the study calls for further research to explore alternative approaches for high-risk populations who may not benefit from current standard care protocols.