RATIONALE: Studying samples of bone marrow and blood from patients with cancer in the laboratory may help doctors predict how well patients will respond to treatment.

PURPOSE: This research study studies biomarkers in samples from patients with newly diagnosed acute myeloid leukemia treated with cytarabine-based chemotherapy.

OBJECTIVES:

• Training and testing of multiparameter flow cytometry-based cell signaling signature (FC classifier 1) associated with in vivo primary chemoresistance (i.e., non-complete response [NR]) to standard induction therapy in adult patients ≤ 60 years old with a newly diagnosed non-M3 acute myeloid leukemia (AML).
• Training and testing of multiparameter flow cytometry-based cell signaling signature (FC classifier 2) associated with complete continuous response at 1 year (CCR1) in adult patients ≤ 60 years old with a newly diagnosed non-M3 AML who are treated with cytarabine-based induction chemotherapy.
• Identification of signaling signature(s) associated with secondary chemoresistance (i.e., disease relapse) in adult patients ≤ 60 years of age who have longitudinally paired peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) or bone marrow mononuclear cells (BMMC) samples at diagnosis and at the time of first relapse. (Exploratory)

OUTLINE: Cryopreserved samples are incubated with cytokines (e.g., interleukins), growth factors (e.g., sargramostim [GM-CSF] and filgrastim [G-CSF]), chemotherapeutic agents (e.g., cytarabine, etoposide phosphate), and other modulators. Cells are fixed, permeabilized, and stained with antibodies that recognize extracellular markers in conjunction with intracellular activation-state specific epitopes of designated signaling molecules. Subsequently, cells are analyzed for multiparametric phospho-flow cytometry in a random manner (without knowledge of clinical variables and outcomes) to training and testing sets. Results are then compared with individual patient clinical outcomes.

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

• Newly diagnosed non-M3 acute myeloid leukemia (AML)

• Pretreatment and relapsed and/or refractory cryopreserved bone marrow mononuclear cells (BMMCs) and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) available

• Have 2+ vials of pretreatment marrow cells and/or 2+ vials of pretreatment PBMCs in the Southwestern Oncology Group (SWOG) AML/Myelodysplastic Syndrome (MDS) Repository

  • Usable samples must contain approximately 1.6 ×10^6 cluster of differentiation antigen 45+ (CD45+) cells post thaw.

• Eligible and evaluable patients who participated on SWOG-S0106 study

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

• Did not refuse consent for this use of specimens

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

• Not specified

Patients enrolled in S0106 that consented to use of specimens for future reserach