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Master Blood Cell Gene Identified

The discovery could lead to new ways of treating many forms of leukemia, says Dr. Stanley Korsmeyer, director of the Dana-Farber Program in Molecular Oncology and leader of the group reporting the finding in the March 16 issue of Developmental Cell.

The gene is called MLL, for mixed lineage leukemia, an aggressive form of blood cancer that affects a small number of infants and some adults who have relapsed after treatment for other leukemias.

"This cancer is an exaggeration of the normal role of this gene," says Korsmeyer. "It is too much of a good thing."