Among patients with myeloproliferative neoplasm, unclassifiable (MPN-U), bone marrow blast and the Dynamic International Prognostic Scoring System (DIPSS) plus score can predict overall survival (OS), according to a study published in American Journal of Clinical Pathology.1 In addition, the study found that the lack of certain mutations seemed to be associated with a better prognosis.
MPN-U is a type of MPN that doesn’t fit one of the other types of MPNs, such as chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML), myelofibrosis (MF), essential thrombocythemia (ET), or polycythemia vera (PV).2 Janus kinase (JAK) mutations are often present in PV, ET, and primary MF; MPL or CALR mutations are often present in ET and primary MF; and chromosome errors are present in patients with CML.2
This study identified additional potential poor prognostic markers for patients with MPN-U, which is important as MPN-U is a heterogeneous category with features that typically preclude classification. MPN-U cases show “a range of clinicopathologic presentations and differences in prognosis depending on the stage of disease,” the authors explained. “Creating further challenges, MPN-U cases remain relatively understudied.”