Comparative genomic hybridization in chronic B-cell leukemias shows a high incidence of chromosomal gains and losses

In chronic B-cell leukemias, fluorescence in situ hybridization has greatly improved the ability to detect certain chromosomal aberrations, as cells in all phases of the cell cycle are analyzed. To obtain a comprehensive view of chromosomal gains and losses, we applied the recently developed technique of comparative genomic hybridization (CGH) to 28 patients with chronic B-cell leukemias. CGH results were compared with those obtained by chromosome banding analysis and interphase cytogenetics. In 19 of the 28 cases, chromosomal imbalances were detected, including amplified DNA sequences in three instances. The most common aberrations included gains of chromosomal material on 8q and 12 as well as losses of 6q, 11q, 13q, and 17p. In 13 cases, CGH revealed chromosomal gains and losses not detected by banding analysis. In 8 of these 13 cases, discrepancies were further investigated using other methods, and in all instances, the CGH findings were confirmed. A limitation of detecting small deleted regions by CGH was found in one example of 18p. In conclusion, our data show that the results of banding analysis in chronic B-cell leukemias often do not reflect the chromosomal changes in the predominant cell clone. This may be one explanation for the as yet poor correlation between cytogenetic findings and clinical course in this group of neoplasms.