Maturation of B-lineage blast crisis cells in chronic myeloid leukemia

A 44 year-old Chinese male presented with lymphoid blast crisis of chronic myeloid leukemia, in which the blast cells exhibited a pre-pre-B cell phenotype (B4+B1-J5+12+smIg-). There was a phenotypic transition during the course of the disease to a more mature B cell phenotype (B4+B1+J5+12+smIgG lambda+). The maturation of blast crisis cells may be related to the chemotherapeutic agents used in the treatment of the disease.