Advances in supportive care of myelodysplastic syndromes.

TL;DRAbstract

The myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) are a heterogenous family of hematologic disorders characterized by ineffective hematopoiesis. Because of the variability between patients regarding prognosis and morbidity related to the disease, consensus regarding the management of these patients has been difficult. Over the past several years, new prognostic scoring systems such as the International Prognostic Scoring System (IPSS) have attempted to provide a projection for long-term stability of the percentage of patients who have "low-grade" or indolent MDS. Unfortunately, its lack of prospective use in clinical trials and other settings has thus far failed to validate it as a functional decision-making tool. Thus, investigators have hypothesized that separating patients based on more simplistic treatment-oriented guidelines may be more efficient. For the majority of patients with MDS, no curative option exists. Patients who are young enough and have an available matched sibling or matched unre

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