Blood Cancer Journal (Aug 2024)

Serum levels of B-cell activating factor are associated with a reduced risk of chronic lymphocytic leukemia

  • Eleanor Frost,
  • Jonathan N. Hofmann,
  • Wen-Yi Huang,
  • Ashley A. Frazer-Abel,
  • Kevin D. Deane,
  • Sonja I. Berndt

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41408-024-01106-7
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 14, no. 1
pp. 1 – 4

Abstract

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Impact Immune dysregulation is thought to contribute to chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) risk, but biological mechanisms are unclear. We discovered that increased serum levels of B-cell activating factor (BAFF), an important regulator of B-cell maturation, were associated with a decreased risk of CLL, even >10 years after blood draw. Our findings suggest that BAFF could be a useful biomarker to assess risk among individuals at high risk, such as those with monoclonal b-cell lymphocytosis.