Myelodysplastic Syndromes

Overview

Mayo Clinic is a world leader in the treatment of patients with bone marrow disorders, including myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS). Although myelodysplastic syndromes are relatively rare, Mayo Clinic physicians care for several hundred patients with these syndromes each year.

Patients with myelodysplastic syndromes face the risk that the disease will transform into leukemia, which can be difficult to treat. The chances of developing leukemia depend on the type of myelodysplastic syndromes and the specific genetic injury that occurred in the bone marrow cells. Most patients who have MDS live with complications from persistent low blood counts, including infection and bleeding.

Diagnosis

Many patients with myelodysplastic syndromes suffer from a variety of symptoms caused by low blood counts. Other patients have no symptoms at all. Physicians often detect MDS incidentally when performing a blood count for another reason. Hematologists diagnose MDS based on a careful examination of the patient's blood under a microscope and a detailed clinical evaluation. An experienced hematopathologist also takes a small sample of bone marrow (biopsy). Careful analysis of bone marrow chromosomes can reveal the type of MDS types.html and exclude other possible diseases. The diagnosis of MDS can be extremely difficult to make. Several other disorders can have similar blood counts and bone marrow appearance.

Treatment Options

There are no known drugs that cure myelodysplastic syndromes. Some patients with milder forms of the disease survive for many years with "supportive care," using growth factors, transfusions and antibiotics. For some young and healthy MDS patients, a bone marrow transplant can sometimes cure the disease. Mayo Clinic doctors are testing a "mini-transplant" approach that they hope will be a safer and equally effective option. Read more about treatment for myelodysplastic syndromes.

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About Myelodysplastic Syndromes

Myelodysplastic syndromes describes a group of bone marrow conditions that cause inadequate production of normal blood cells and have a risk of progressing to acute myeloid leukemia (AML).

In MDS, stem cells (cells in the bone marrow responsible for making blood cells) don't mature and either do not make enough blood cells or make defective cells. Immature stem cells eventually crowd out healthy stem cells. Once 20 percent of the cells in the bone marrow are immature cells (blast cells), the condition is no longer considered MDS and is instead called AML.

These conditions usually affect older individuals (the average age at diagnosis is mid-60s), but MDS can affect patients at any age. Some patients develop MDS after treatment for another condition, such as cancer. In these cases, MDS often develops years after the completion of chemotherapy or radiation. However, for most patients the cause of myelodysplastic syndromes is unknown.

Read more about myelodysplastic syndromes at www.MayoClinic.com.