Prognostic factors in stage AO B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukaemia

85 patients presenting to a single centre with stage AO B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (B-CLL) have been studied. The duration of follow-up has ranged from a minimum of 1 year to a maximum of 18 years with a mean of 6 years. 14 patients have had progressive disease and 23 patients have died, of whom nine had CLL-related deaths. We assessed the prognostic significance of the following parameters: age at presentation, sex, haemoglobin concentration, initial lymphocyte count, surface membrane phenotype, serum immunoglobulin levels at presentation and karyotype. None of these factors were predictive of survival, but there was a correlation between initial lymphocyte count, surface immunoglobulin MD lambda phenotype, and complex karyotypic abnormalities and disease progression. Two patients with a complex karyotype have been followed for more than 5 years without evidence of progression.