Reducing ethnic disparities in acute leukemia (REDIAL) consortium
Mentor Name: Philip Lupo
While great strides have been made to improve leukemia treatment and survival outcomes, disparities still exist among some groups. Hispanic children experience a higher incidence of leukemia, an association with relapse, and poor outcomes, while Native American genetic ancestry has proven to be indicative of relapse, independent of minimal residual disease (MRD) status. This research project will investigate potential prognostic biological differences between ethnic groups to enable identification of leukemia patients at increased risk for chemoresistance, relapse, and toxicity. The aim is to build risk-prediction models for acute leukemia adverse treatment outcomes, incorporating information on the genetic history and characterizing differences between Hispanics and non-Hispanics.