Myelodysplastic Syndrome Health Article

Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy has been used to treat some MDS patients; however, the disease often recurs after a period of time. This type of therapy uses cell-killing drugs that may also damage healthy cells in the body. Most chemotherapy drugs are associated with some side effects. For these reasons, chemotherapy is generally not used until the MDS becomes more aggressive or the patient has a high IPSS score.

Growth factors

Growth factors are natural proteins that the body normally uses to control blood production. These substances stimulate the patient's bone marrow to produce healthy blood cells. Growth factors that stimulate white cell production are G-CSF (also called neupogen or filgrastim) and GMCSF (Leukine, sargramostim). In order to increase red cell production another growth factor, erythropoietin (Procrit) is used. These growth factors are safe with few side effects and are available only in the injectable form. The physician will decide if this treatment is appropriate for an individual patient.

Alternative treatment

There are no alternative therapies that have been proven to successfully treat MDS. Some of the available alternative drugs can have adverse side effects and therefore a physician should be informed if they are being used.

Prognosis

The prognosis for MDS patients depends on the sub-type of their disease and the IPSS score. Patients with RA, RARS or low IPSS score rarely develop leukemia and may live with disease for some years. The higher-risk patients including those with RAEB, RAEBt, CMMoL or high IPSS scores progress more rapidly, and require intensive therapy to control the disease.

Managing MDS requires frequent doctor appointments to monitor disease progression and to evaluate the response to treatment. Fortunately for many patients, recent advances in therapy have significantly enhanced their ability to cope with MDS. Experimental drugs and a better understanding of the disease are likely to improve the overall prognosis in the future.

Prevention

MDS is usually impossible to prevent. Being careful about daily activities and avoiding the use of aspirin-like products that thin the blood may prevent secondary complications of MDS such as bruising and bleeding. Practicing good hygiene and avoiding crowds or people with infections can sometimes prevent infections. A well balanced diet is recommended to increase overall energy.

BOOKS

Aguayo, Alvaro, Jorge Cortes, and Hagop Kantarjian. "Myelodysplastic Syndromes," In Cancer Management: A Mulit-disciplinary Approach, Fourth Edition, edited by Richard Pazdur, et al. PRR, Inc, 2000.

ORGANIZATIONS

Aplastic Anemia Foundation of America. P.O. Box 613, Annapolis, MD 21404. (800) 747-2820. <http://www.aplastic.org>.

Leukemia Society of America. 600 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10016. (800) 955-4LSA. <http://www.leukemia.org>.

Myelodysplastic Syndromes Foundation. 464 Main Street, P.O. Box 477, Crosswicks, NJ 08515. (800) MDS-0839. <www.mds-foundation.org>.

Belind Rowland, Ph.D.

J. Ricker Polsdorfer