Preliminary investigation on the significance of the hand-mirror cell and mitotic cell in 60 children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia

Hand-mirror cell （HMC） and mitotic cell（MC） in 60 children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia were observed. There were no statistical differences between the HMC, MC and the cell classified according to FAB system in children of high risk and low risk groups or those cases of leukemia with involvement of the central nervous system. Eight cases with HMC≥3.5% all achieved complete remission and the median survival of the patients with HMC≥0.5% was longer than those with HMC≤0.4%. It seems that more favorable remission and longer survival may be espected in patients with high percentage of HMC. No relationship between the prognosis and the percentage of MC in these children was found.