[Research progress on minimal residual disease in acute leukemia detected by multiparametric flow cytometry]

In recent years, with the advent of new chemotherapeutic agents, the treatment of acute leukemia has made a great progress and its complete remission rate is up to 50%-80% in patients. However, some patients still relapse in 3 to 5 years after diagnosis. It is believed that the main cause is related to the minimal residual disease (MRD). At present, multiparametric flow cytometry (MFC) with high sensitivity and accurate quantity is one of the effective methods for detecting MRD. Leukemia cells and normal cells are differentiated by analyzing different immunophenotypes. The monitoring of MRD by MFC can help to assess efficacy of treatment, guide treatment selection and predict recurrence of the disease. This article reviewed advantages, challenges, clinical significance and prospect of MFC in detecting MRD.