Optimal treatment approaches for patients with myelodysplastic syndrome

02/2017

MUDr. Petra Richterová, MUDr. Zdeněk Kořistek, Ph.D., MUDr. Lukáš Stejskal, prof. MUDr. Roman Hájek, CSc.

Klinika hematoonkologie LF OU a FN Ostrava

SUMMARY

Myelodysplastic syndrome is a clonal disorder of the bone marrow caused by damage to the genetic information myeloid stem cell. It represents a heterogeneous group of disorders characterized by ineffective hematopoiesis with dysplasia of one or more myeloid lineage leading to cytopenia (or cytopenias) and the high incidence of progression to acute myeloid leukemia (about 1/3 cases). The blood count is most prevalently represented by anemia alone, in combination with thrombocytopenia or leucopenia, neutropenia. Clinical symptoms are consistent with the type and depth of the cytopenia – anemic syndrome, bleeding manifestation from thrombocytopenia or infectious complications in neutropenic patients. Myelodysplastic syndrome is a disease occurring almost solely in patients of older age (most frequent occurrence between 65–70 years), with an incidence of 3–5 new cases per 100,000 population per year. The incidence of myelodysplastic syndrome increases with age rapidly and in a group of people over 70 years amounts to 20 to 40 new cases per 100,000 inhabitants. Myelodysplastic syndrome is diagnosed as in the case of primary – unknown etiology, or secondary – often after chemotherapy or radiotherapy for an other cancer or after exposure to a known toxic agent.

KEY WORDS

myelodysplastic syndrome, bone marrow, cytopenia, acute myeloid leukemia, therapy