Cancer Treatment Today

Whether a condition is a cancer or not in a contractual context can be analyzed using some widely accepted definitions of the word “cancer”. Myelodysplastic syndrome is a name given to variety on conditions characterized by defects in inter-cellular communications, deficient hematopoietic  cell production and genetic changes that increase the risk of  developing of acute leukemia. It used to be called “preleukemia”.  World Health Organizations

It is rare to have MDS and PNH coexist as two full blown disorders but PNH clones can be present in MDS and PNH can resemble some features of MDS. Among acquired stem cell disorders, pathological links between myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) and aplastic anaemia (AA), and paroxysmal nocturnal haemoglobinuria (PNH) and AA, have been often described, whereas the relationship between MDS and PNH is not entirely clear. Many reports identified small PNH

Thrombocytopenia is a frequent symptom in patients with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) and acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Eltrombopag is a small molecule thrombopoietin receptor agonist that might be a new option to treat thrombocytopenia in these diseases, provided that it can be shown does not stimulate malignant hematopoiesis. Unfortunately, there is no significant literature to support Promacta in the setting of ongoing treatment for AML or in

Lay Summary: Allogeneic  stem cell transplantation is standard of care for younger patients with MDS. Allogeneic stem cell transplantation is standard of care for younger patients with MDS. Age 60 is considered appropriate for it. The guidelines recommend that all patients < 65 years should be assessed for fitness/eligibility for allogeneic SCT as soon as possible after diagnosis, as SCT outcome is improved if performed early. If eligible and

Lay Summary: I review some of the new drugs for myelodysplastic syndromes. The main options available to MDS patients in the past were blood transfusions, antibiotics to prevent infection and blood cell growth factors, drugs designed to jumpstart blood cell production. Today, almost all patients still receive blood transfusions, but transfusions don’t provide long-term relief and repeated red blood cell transfusions often leave patients with iron-rich

Lenalidomide, an oral immunomodulatory agent, has received approval in the USA from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the management of myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) classified by the International Prognostic Scoring System (IPSS) as low risk or intermediate-1 risk and with a deletion 5q (del(5q)) cytogenetic abnormality. Although some patients with del(5q) have a relatively good prognosis, all del(5q) patients will become transfusion-dependent

Thalidomide exerts in vitro heterogeneous biological effects on hematopoiesis which have supported its possible use in treating myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS). Some recent clinical trials have confirmed that thalidomide may improve anemia and, less frequently, other cytopenias, in a proportion of younger patients with low-risk MDS (11–56%, on intention-to-treat analysis). Of interest, erythroid responses may be achieved also in transfusion-dependent

Myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) are clonal hematologic stem cell disorders characterized by ineffective and dysplastic hematopoiesis leading to progressive anemia, leukopenia, and thrombocytopenia. Low risk disease can usually be treated with supportive measures and a variety of drugs, some of which have been found ineffective for this patient. Antithymocyte globulin (ATG) has been successfully used to treat pancytopenia resulting from severe aplastic

Myelofibrosis characterized by splenomegaly and bone marrow dysfunction leading ultimately to acute leukemia. Except for allogeneic and autologous stem cell transplantation, treatment is unsatisfactory.  Non-transplant treatment modalities have not improved the average 3-5 year survival associated with this disease. The usual palliative treatments include erythropoietin, androgens, hydroxyurea, and splenectomy. Myelofibrosis ( also called agnogenic

The biologic and clinical relevance of cytogenetic analysis in myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) is well established and karyotype has been identified by the International Prognostic Scoring System (IPSS) as one of the three variables for the definition of prognosis in MDS. The German–Austrian MDS Study Group presented cytogenetic findings in 2,072 patients with MDS, which serve as a basis for the characterization of the cytogenetic subgroups. The