Blood, 1960, Vol. 16, No. 2, pp. 1073-1088.
© 1960 American Society of Hematology, Inc.
Application of Hematopoietic Cell Grafts to the Treatment
of Leukemias and Allied Diseases. A Critical Review
GEORGES MATHÉ 1
1 Centre de Recherches de l’Association Claude Bernard et Service Jean
Bernard, Hôpital Saint-Louis, Paris.
A brief summary has been given of the present knowledge concerning
transfusion of hematopoietic cells in laboratory animals and also in man.
A survey has been made of the possible application of grafts of hematopoietic cells in the "preventive" treatment of experimental leukemia with
emphasis on irradiation-induced and spontaneous leukemias.
Numerous articles have been devoted to describing attempts at curing
experimental leukemias, especially the transplantable varieties, by irradiation
followed by transfusion of hematopoietic cells. The results vary from one
leukemia to the other. Most authors admit the rarity of eradicating leukemia
by irradiation with lethal or supralethal doses followed by transfusion of isologous hematopoietic cells. It has been shown that eradication can eventually be obtained when irradiation is followed by transfusion of homologous
hematopoietic cells. This, most probably, is due to an immune reaction of
those cells against the leukemic cells. Furthermore, even when the leukemia
can be eradicated, the animals usually die from the secondary syndrome.
A detailed analysis is given of the reported literature dealing with attempts
at treating human leukemia by irradiation followed by transfusion of autologous, isologous or homologous bone marrow.
Submitted on January 27, 1959
Accepted on January 11, 1960
