Cell Surface Lipoprotein Lipase Enzyme as A Prognostic Indicator in B-Cell Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia

Lipoprotein lipase (LPL) has emerged as a distinct prognostic marker for chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), a heterogeneous disease with a similar heterogeneity in life expectancy. While many prior studies have focused on tumor expression of LPL mRNA, LPL surface protein expression has been less robustly studied as a prognostic marker. A novel antibody developed at Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth has been previously utilized in immunohistochemistry assays of breast and prostate cancer. With this study we aimed to use this antibody as a flow cytometry marker of surface LPL expression correlated with overall survival and time to first treatment. Of the 19 patients studied, our data show that LPL surface protein expression as measured by flow cytometry trended toward a protective effect on overall survival and overall better prognosis.