Despite the fact that some characteristic surface markers of T-PLL were absent in SUP-T11 cells (e.g. CD4, CD8, CD25 and CD52), SUP-T11 was selected based on laboratory findings demonstrating a close resemblance with T-PLL regarding CCR7 (Fig. 4 a) and based on the presence of the T-PLL signature lesion of t (14;14)(q11;q13.2), an alteration found in other mature T-cell leukemia [39, 40], but extremely rare in immature stages [1, 41]. Here, CCR7 is linked to T-cell leukemia.