Immnophenotypic markers in AML

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Table: Marker patterns that allow definite diagnosis of acute myeloid leukaemia;
Pattern 1: A myeloid lineage-defining marker pattern is present and No lineage-defining markers of T or B cells are present.
MPO	MPO is the only "lineage-defining" marker of AML. MPO is expressed in around 80% of cases of AML and in the absence of any other lineage defining features detection of MPO expression allows a diagnosis of AML to be made (see notes).
Pattern 2: At least two myeloid lineage-associated markers are present and There are no lineage defining markers of T or B cells and No more than one T-cell or B-cell lineage-associated marker is present
CD38	Variable expression in AML cases (around 20%) compared with higher expression on lymphoid blasts (particularly T-ALL). CD38 may identify leukaemia initiating cells and is a potential therapeutic target.
HLA-DR	Expressed in around 70-80% of AML cases, but also frequently expressed in ALL. The most valuable aspect of HLA-DR is the absent or weak expression in APL when compared with reactive myeloid cells.
TDT	TdT is more often associated with ALL, but the expression by around 20% of AML cases is well recognised, particularly in more primitive forms of the disease.
CD7	Regarded as a pan-T-cell marker expressed throughout T cell development, CD7 is also expressed frequently as an "aberrant" marker in AML where it is best regarded as a marker of their primitive nature

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