Bone Marrow Cultures Stimulated with IL-2/CpG Oligonucleotide Benefits Chromosomal Aberration Detection of CLL Patients when Compared with Standard Culture.

Background: Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is the most common leukemia in the United States. Metaphase-based cytogenetic tests, such as G-Band karyotyping, are among the most effective to detect CLL and provide significant prognostic information. However, the use of metaphase cytogenetics is currently problematic due to the low mitotic index of most CLL cells in vitro cultures.