Abstract
Objectives This study was conducted to evaluate serum zinc and plasma malondialdehyde (MDA) levels in de-novo acute myeloid leukemia (AML) before and after induction chemotherapy and their relation with AML phenotype and genotype.
Materials and methods Twenty-five AML patients were subjected to serum zinc evaluation using flame atomic absorption spectrophotometry and plasma MDA evaluation using colorimetric method at day 1 before induction chemotherapy and at day 21 after induction chemotherapy.
Results Pretreatment MDA levels were higher in patients in comparison with controls (P = 0.03). Pretreatment zinc levels differed significantly compared with post-treatment levels (P = 0.005). The percentage of bone marrow infiltration by blasts at diagnosis correlated inversely with zinc levels (P = 0.011) and positively with MDA levels (P = 0.041). Finally, pretreatment MDA levels were higher among patients harboring adverse cytogenetics (P = 0.004).
Conclusion The elevated plasma MDA status at diagnosis in AML patients correlates with a higher tumor burden in the bone marrow and adverse cytogenetic risk. (C) 2015 The Egyptian Society of Haematology.