A UCSF-led team has discovered a direct link between an inherited genetic mutation, a set of developmental abnormalities and a rare form of childhood leukemia called juvenile myelomonocytic leukemia, or JMML. The study demonstrates a new familial link in JMML and has significant implications, the researchers say, for improving the diagnosis and treatment of the disease. Findings are reported in the August 8, 2010, Advance Online Publication of the journal Nature Genetics, available at http://www.nature.com/naturegenetics/.
