Anna Tierens

Dr Anna Tierans completed her residency in Internal Medicine in the Hospital of Alost, Belgium in 1986. She then became a research fellow in the Department of Pathology, University of Louvain, Belgium, and a resident in clinical pathology in 1990.

In 1993 Dr Tierans joined the University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha (NE, USA) as a resident for one year in clinical pathology in the Department of Pathology and Microbiology

After this, she returned to University Hospital of Louvain as a Senior consultant haematopathologist, Department of Clinical Pathology (liquid hematology section).

Dr Tierans became the Senior consultant haematopathologist, Department of Pathology, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway in 1998 and Director of the flow cytometry laboratory there in 2000 and Director of the molecular pathology laboratory in 2009.

in 2013, Dr Tierans joined the University Health Network in Toronto as a Senior Consultant haematopathologist,  and Associate Professor, University of Toronto.                         

Research Synopsis

My research interests include:

• Minimal residual disease in acute myeloid and lymphoblastic leukemia (AML-MRD coordinator for NOPHO)
• Molecular biology of myeloid leukemia
• Monoclonal B- lymphocytosis and B-cell lymphoma

My laboratory responsibilities are:

• Bone marrow pathology
• Immunophenotyping of leukemia and lymphoma
• Minimal residual disease analysis of acute myeloid and lymphoblastic leukemia
• Optimization of diagnostic flow cytometry assays

Recent Publications

Tierens AM, Holte H, Warsame A, Ikonomou IM, Wang J, Chan WC, Delabie J. Low levels of monoclonal small B cells in the bone marrow of patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma of activated B-cell type but not of germinal center B-cell type. Haematologica 2010, 95: 1334-1341.

Micci F, Thorsen J, Haugom L, Zeller B, Tierens A, Heim S. Translocation t(1;16)(p31;q24) rearranging CBFA2T3 is specific for acute erythroid leukemia. Leukemia. 2011, 25:1510-1512.

Yri OE, Torfoss D, Hungnes O, Tierens A, Waalen K, Nordøy T, Dudman SKilander A, Wader KF, Ostenstad B, Ekanger R, Meyer P, Kolstad A. Rituximab blocks protective serologic response to influenza A (H1N1) 2009 vaccination in lymphoma patients during or within 6 months after treatment. Blood. 2011, 118:6769-71.

Warsame A, Delabie J, Malecka A, Wand J, Trøen G, Tierens A. Monocytoid B-cells: an enigmatic B cell subset showing evidence of extrafollicular immunolgobulin gene somatic hypermutation. Scand J Immunol 2012, 75: 500-509.

Micci F, Thorsen J, Panagopoulos I, Nyquist KB, Zeller B, Tierens A, Heim S. High throughput sequencing identifies an NFIA/CBFA2T3 fusion gene in acute erythroid leukemia with t(1;16)(p31;q24). Leukemia 2013, 27:980-982.  

Randen U, Tierens AM, Tjønnfjord GE, Delabie J. Bone marrow histology in monoclonal B-lymphocytosis shows various B-cell infiltration patterns. Am J Clin Pathol 2013, 139: 390-395.  

Randen U, Trøen G, Tierens A, Steen C, Warsame A, Beiske K, Tjønnfjord GE, Berentsen S, Delabie J. Primary cold agglutinin associated lymphoproliferative disease: a B+cell lymphoma of the bone marrow distinct from lymphoplasmacytic lymphoma. Haematologica 2014, 99: 497-504.

Honours and Awards

Clinical Teaching Excellence Award in Hemopathology, Department of Laboratory Medicine & Pathobiology, University of Toronto (2021)