A study of leukemic cell migration by an agarose plate method

By means of inducing random migration of leukemic cells in human peripheral blood by an agarose plate method, a study was made to see how migration distance and cell morphology after migration differed with the type of leukemia. After 3 days of incubation, the distance of random migration in cells of lymphocytic leukemia patients was on the average 0.41 mm for the cells of 13 patients with adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma and 0.03 mm for the cells of four patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia which were all of B-cell origin. Thus leukemic cells of T-cell origin migrated farther than those of B-cell origin. In the cases of myelocytic leukemia, the distance of random migration was on the average 0.54 mm for the cells of five patients with acute myelocytic leukemia, 2.42 mm for the cells of three patients with acute myelomonocytic leukemia, 1.69 mm for the cells of four patients with chronic myelocytic leukemia at blastic crisis and 3.78 mm for the cells of one patient with chronic monocytic leukemia. Thus, cells of monocyte origin migrated quite well. Migrating cells differing from cells of smear samples retained their original natural morphology and were considered to serve as an aid in the differentiation of types of leukemia.