Relationship between serum copper and bone marrow blasts in acute leukaemia

Investigation of serum copper level (SCL) and bone marrow obtained on the same day from 45 children with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) showed a highly significant correlation between SCL and marrow blasts. The increase of SCL was associated with the progress of ALL and the elevation of the marrow parablast percentage. The highest mean SCL level was observed in cases displaying full marrow involvement with concomitant hyperleukocytosis and/or leukaemic tumours. These observations suggest that SCL can be useful in the management of children with acute leukemia.