New clue to Down syndrome, leukemia link

From Atlanta, at a meeting of the American Society of Hematology

People with Down syndrome are at least 10 times as likely as people without it to develop leukemia. Scientists now report that a mutation in the JAK2 gene on chromosome 9 shows up in one-fifth of people who have Down syndrome and acute lymphoid leukemia (ALL), suggesting that the mutation accounts for some of this increased risk.