Characterization of Comparative Clinical Outcomes and Molecular Features of Black Patients with Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia (APL) Reveals Similar Survival and Distinct Genomic Profiles

Introduction: Although APL, a subtype of acute myeloid leukemia (AML), is an aggressive disease, its treatment was revolutionized with combination all- trans retinoic acid (ATRA) and arsenic trioxide (ATO), making APL a highly curable malignancy. Molecularly, APL is characterized by t(15;17) resulting in PML:: RARA gene fusion as disease-initiating event and by several recurrent gene mutations (eg, FLT3) identified in previous studies. In AML, prior studies have established inferior overall survival (OS) of Black versus White AML patients (pts) in both population-based analyses and clinical trials, found a negative prognostic impact of higher social deprivation (SDI), and characterized differences in frequencies and impact of disease-associated gene mutations. Herein, we compared OS of Black and White APL pts and evaluated genomic landscape of Black pts, which has not been comprehensively assessed to date. Methods: For nationwide population analysis, 2 sets of cancer registries were included in the Surveillance Epidemiology End Results (SEER) Program of the National Cancer Institute to identify 829 adults diagnosed with de novo APL (confirmed by cytogenetic and/or molecular findings) in 1995-2019. To assess survival in the setting of clinical trials, we analyzed 249 pts treated on historic frontline Cancer and Leukemia Group B (CALGB)/Alliance for Clinical Trials in Oncology (Alliance) trials with or without inclusion of ATRA (CALGB 9191, 1992-1995; CALGB 9710, 1999-2005). For Alliance pts, neighborhood SDI was assigned based on pt-reported residence zip code and classified as low (1-25, n=33) or high deprivation (26-100, n=95). OS was analyzed separately for pts diagnosed before and after 2012 to account for treatment advances with ATRA/ATO. To assess molecular features, we performed integrated genomic profiling (paired tumor/normal whole-exome and transcriptome sequencing) on 31 Black APL Alliance pts (9/31 completed, with complete results to be presented at the Annual Meeting). Results: On a population level using SEER data, 3-year (3y) OS significantly improved from 65% for cases diagnosed in 1995-2012 to 75% in those diagnosed after 2012 (p=