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Polymorphism of the erythropoietin gene promotor and the development of myelodysplastic syndromes subsequent to multiple myeloma

Leukemia volume 26, pages 844–845 (2012)Cite this article

The occurrence of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and myelodysplastic syndromes (MDSs) following multiple myeloma has been recognized for decades.1 Alkylating agents have long been considered to be part of the cause.2, 3, 4, 5 Some, but not all, smaller investigations have reported that higher cumulative melphalan dose and longer duration of melphalan therapy are associated with an increased risk of AML.6, 7 The role of nontreatment-related factors is largely unknown.

We were impressed with our observation that the G/G genotype of the single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) rs1617640 in the erythropoietin (EPO) promoter is significantly (P<0.001) more prevalent in MDS patients (47/187; 25.1%) compared with healthy controls (6/95; 6.3%).8 Therefore, using peripheral blood obtained at the time of diagnosis of multiple myeloma, we determined whether the rs1617640G/G genotype was associated with the development of MDS during the course of multiple myeloma.

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Acknowledgements

The study was approved by the Mayo Clinic Institutional Review Board; informed consent was obtained from all participants in this study. An exemption from institutional review board review was obtained from the National Institutes of Health Office of Human Subjects Research because we used anonymous data/samples.

Author contributions

OL and MA initiated and designed the study. RAK provided patient samples. WM conducted the genotyping. All authors were involved in the interpretation of the results. OL drafted the manuscript. All authors reviewed and approved the submitted version of the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Multiple Myeloma Section, Medical Oncology Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA

    O Landgren & N Korde

  2. Department of Hematology/Oncology, Quest Diagnostics Nicols Institute, San Juan Capistrano, CA, USA

    W Ma & M Albitar

  3. Division of Hematology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA

    R A Kyle & S V Rajkumar

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  1. O Landgren
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  2. W Ma
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  3. R A Kyle
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  4. S V Rajkumar
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  5. N Korde
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  6. M Albitar
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Correspondence to O Landgren.

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The authors declare no conflict of interest.

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Landgren, O., Ma, W., Kyle, R. et al. Polymorphism of the erythropoietin gene promotor and the development of myelodysplastic syndromes subsequent to multiple myeloma. Leukemia 26, 844–845 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1038/leu.2011.262

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