Epidemiology of Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia in Sardinia, Italy (1974 –2003)

Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is a multifaceted, multifactorial disease caused by the monoclonal expansion of B lymphocytes, which become unresponsive to physiological blocks of replication and accumulate in the peripheral blood, bone marrow, and secondary lymphoid organ [1]. This lymphoid malignancy typically affects elderly men, with an average age at diagnosis approximately 70 years and less than 15% of cases arising at age 60 years or earlier [2]. Monoclonal CLL lymphocytes exhibit a peculiar immunophenotype CD19-, CD23-, and CD5-positive, and low expression of CD20 and surface immunoglobulins [3].
Source: Experimental Hematology - Category: Hematology Authors: Tags: Article Source Type: research