The effect of short-course high-dose methylprednisolone on peripheral blood lymphocyte subsets in children with acute leukemia during remission induction treatment

• Published in: Leukemia research 2003, Vol.27 (1), p.19-21
• Main Authors: Tunç, Bahattin, Öner, Ahmet F, Hiçsönmez, Gönül
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Acute Disease; Adolescent; Antigens, CD - analysis; Antineoplastic agents; Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols - therapeutic use; Biological and medical sciences; Chemotherapy; Child; Child, Preschool; Children; Female; High-dose; Humans; Immunophenotyping; Leukemia; Leukemia, Myeloid - blood; Leukemia, Myeloid - drug therapy; Lymphocyte Count; Lymphocyte subsets; Lymphocyte Subsets - drug effects; Male; Medical sciences; Methylprednisolone; Methylprednisolone - administration & dosage; Methylprednisolone - pharmacology; Pharmacology. Drug treatments; Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma - blood; Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma - drug therapy; Remission Induction; T-Lymphocyte Subsets - drug effects
• ISSN: 0145-2126; 1873-5835
• DOI: 10.1016/S0145-2126(02)00074-7

We have previously demonstrated a favorable effect of high-dose steroid in the treatment of children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and acute myeloblastic leukemia (AML). This study was performed to determine the effect of short-course high-dose methylprednisolone (HDMP) treatment on the peripheral blood (PB) T lymphocyte subsets, and blast cells, during remission induction treatment in 23 children with newly diagnosed acute leukemia (16 with ALL, seven with AML). All patients were administered HDMP as a single daily oral dose of 30 mg/kg for the first 4 days of induction therapy. The number of PB lymphocyte subsets (CD3, CD4, CD8, CD16+56, CD45RA, and CD45RO) were determined by flow cytometry before and after 4 days of HDMP treatment. While the number of PB blast cells significantly decreased, the absolute number of T lymphocytes expressing CD3, CD4, CD8, CD45RA and the absolute number of CD16+56 (natural killer) cells increased in all patients. We suggest that the beneficial effects of HDMP in the induction treatment of acute leukemia may occur partly due to an increase in the number of PB T lymphocyte subsets. A study randomly assigning patients to treatment with either conventional therapy or HDMP may provide further information.