This is a qualitative test used to diagnose acute promyelocyctic leukemia. Majority of Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia (APL) have a translocation t(15;17)(q22;q12-21) which fuse the promyelocytic gene (PML) on chromosome band 15q22 to the retinoic acid receptor alpha (RARA) gene at 17q12-21. This PML / RARA fusion is related with a good response to all- trans retinoic acid therapy.
