General Information About Myelodysplastic Syndrome
Disease Details and Frequently Asked Questions
It is a pre-cancerous condition where the bone marrow functions, but the blood cells it produces are defective (dysplastic) and die within the marrow before entering the circulation, creating a severe cellular deficiency in the peripheral blood.
Yes, this is the greatest risk of the disease. As the proportion of defective and immature cells (blasts) increases, a significant portion of MDS patients progress to aggressive Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML).
Symptoms vary depending on which blood cell type is underproduced. If red blood cells are deficient, persistent anemia and palpitations occur; if white blood cells are low, recurrent severe infections manifest; if platelets are lacking, skin bruising and epistaxis/gingival bleeding are observed.
It mostly occurs as a primary condition in individuals over 60 years of age due to genetic cellular aging. The risk of developing it years later (secondary MDS) is high in individuals who have previously received heavy chemotherapy or radiotherapy for another cancer.
A complete blood count (hemogram) reveals very low counts in multiple blood cell lines (cytopenia). A definitive diagnosis is established through a Bone Marrow Biopsy by identifying abnormally shaped (dysplastic) cells and cytogenetic/chromosomal abnormalities.
Treatment varies according to the patient's age and the disease's risk score. In low-risk patients, supportive blood transfusions and erythropoiesis/leukopoiesis-stimulating injections are administered. Chemotherapy is used in high-risk patients. The only method that completely cures the disease is a Stem Cell (Bone Marrow) Transplantation from an eligible donor.
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