Cancer Cell Procoagulant Activity

Studies of the procoagulant activity (PA) of human acute leukemia cells (ALC) has demonstrated that acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) had approximately 25-50% of the PA of normal human granulocytes, while lymphoid leukemias had increased PA. Acute promyelocyte leukemia (APL) had approximately 4-8 times the activity of normal granulocytes while acute myeloblastic leukemia (AML) cells had the same activity as normal. The PA was characterized as tissue factor (TF). Two correlations of the TF activity in ALC is the incidence of the fibrinogen kinetics and intravascular coagulation. He have done fibrinogen survivals on 15 patients with AL. The results of these kinetic studies have revealed that in 5 patients with ALL the T/2 is 2.94 ± .31 days; fraction catabolic rate (FCR) 29.8 ± 4.3%/day were slightly different from the control of T/2 3.69 ± 0.45 days; FCR 22.1 ± 2.5K/day. In 3 patients with AHL, the T/2 was 1.92 ± 0.79 days; FCR 44.2 ± 20.6%/day. In patients with APL, the fibrinogen survival revealed a T/2 of 0.069 ± 0.25 days; FCR 160.9 ± 62.7%/day. The use of anticoagulants in APL markedly decreases death from hemorrhage. In other investigations we have studied the effect of anticoagulation on the spread of peripheral sarcomas in man. Warfarin anticoagulation was used as an adjunct t o amputation of sarcomas. The results of these studies are quite encouraging in that the patients appear to have a longer remission and to have better overall survival.