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Published on: March 26, 2018
PD-1/PD-L1 Expression Could Be a Prognostic Factor in Patients with Acute Myeloid Leukemia
Gizem Varkal1, Emel Gürkan2, Emine Kılıç Bağır3
1Department of Internal Medicine, Çukurova University Faculty of Medicine, Adana, Türkiye.
Insights
Programmed death-1 (PD-1) and programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) expression in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) was infrequent but associated with poorer survival. These findings suggest PD-1/PD-L1 may indicate poor prognosis in AML patients.
Area of Science:
- Oncology
- Immunology
- Hematology
Background:
- Investigating programmed death-1 (PD-1) and programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) expression patterns in acute myeloid leukemia (AML).
- Determining the prevalence and prognostic significance of PD-1 and PD-L1 in AML patients.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the expression of PD-1 and PD-L1 in AML.
- To correlate PD-1/PD-L1 expression with clinical characteristics and survival outcomes in AML.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective analysis of 99 AML patients.
- Immunohistochemical assessment of PD-1 and PD-L1 expression in bone marrow biopsy samples.
- Correlation analysis with clinical data, treatment response, and survival.
Main Results:
- PD-1/PD-L1 positivity (≥ 5%) was found in 9.1% of AML patients.
- PD-1/PD-L1 expression correlated with lower hemoglobin levels at diagnosis.
- Elevated PD-1/PD-L1 expression was associated with significantly poorer overall survival (11 months vs. 24 months).
Conclusions:
- PD-1/PD-L1 expression is relatively infrequent in AML but linked to worse survival outcomes.
- PD-1/PD-L1 may serve as a prognostic factor in AML.
- Larger studies are warranted to confirm the prognostic relevance of PD-1/PD-L1 in AML.
Background:
In this research, PD-1 and PD-L1 expression patterns were examined to determine their prevalence and prognostic relevance among patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML).
Methods:
Ninety-nine patients diagnosed with AML at the Hematology Department of Çukurova University Medical School between March 2009 and June 2017 were retrospectively analyzed. The expression levels of PD-1 and PD-L1 in bone marrow biopsy samples were determined using immunohistochemical methods. Their correlations with clinical and laboratory characteristics, treatment response, and survival data were analyzed.
Results:
PD-1/PD-L1 positivity (≥ 5%) was observed in 9.1% of the cohort (n = 9). At the time of diagnosis, patients showing PD-1/PD-L1 expression exhibited significantly lower hemoglobin levels than those without expression (7.25 g/dL vs 8.80 g/dL; P = .017). Elevated PD-1/PD-L1 expression correlated with poorer overall survival, with a median OS of 11 months (95% CI: 5.9-16.1) compared to 24 months (95% CI: 13.4-34.6) in the non-expressing group (P = .033).
Conclusion:
Although PD-1/PD-L1 expression was relatively infrequent among AML patients, positive cases had significantly poorer survival. These findings suggest that PD-1/PD-L1 expression may be associated with poorer clinical outcomes in AML; however, larger studies are needed to clarify its prognostic relevance. Cite this article as: Varkal G, Gürkan E, Bağır EK, Mete B. PD1/PDL1 expression could be a prognostic factor in patients with acute myeloid leukemia. Eurasian J Med. 2026, 58(4), 1217, doi: 10.5152/ eurasianjmed.2026.251 217.
