Technical Report No. 4-87
Reclassification of leukemia among A-bomb survivors by French-American-British (FAB) classification. 1. Concordance of diagnosis in Nagasaki cases by RERF members and a member of FAB cooperative group
Matsuo T, Tomonaga M, Bennett JM, Kuriyama K, Imanaka F, Kuramoto A, Kamada N, Ichimaru M, Finch SC, Pisciotta AV, Ishimaru TEditor’s note: A publication based on this report was published in Jpn J Clin Oncol 18:91-6, 1988.
Summary
The concordance rate for the French-American-British (FAB) reclassification diagnoses of atomic bomb-related cases of leukemia in Nagasaki was determined by a group of RERF hematologists and one of the members of the FAB cooperative group. The peripheral blood and/or bone marrow smears from 193 persons with leukemia or related disorder were reviewed. There was 85% agreement in the identification of leukemia types and subtypes. There was almost complete agreement for the diagnosis of non-FAB disorders (chronic myeloid leukemia and others) resulting in overall concordance of 88.2%. The conclusion from this remarkably high rate of concordance is that it is feasible to accurately apply the FAB classification system to the cases of A-bomb-related leukemia. These preliminary observations suggest that the previously established leukemia types for about a quarter of the cases of acute leukemia and related disorders should be changed.
The concordance rate for the French-American-British (FAB) reclassification diagnoses of atomic bomb-related cases of leukemia in Nagasaki was determined by a group of RERF hematologists and one of the members of the FAB cooperative group. The peripheral blood and/or bone marrow smears from 193 persons with leukemia or related disorder were reviewed. There was 85% agreement in the identification of leukemia types and subtypes. There was almost complete agreement for the diagnosis of non-FAB disorders (chronic myeloid leukemia and others) resulting in overall concordance of 88.2%. The conclusion from this remarkably high rate of concordance is that it is feasible to accurately apply the FAB classification system to the cases of A-bomb-related leukemia. These preliminary observations suggest that the previously established leukemia types for about a quarter of the cases of acute leukemia and related disorders should be changed.