Main Category: Lymphoma / Leukemia / Myeloma
Also Included In: Seniors / Aging; Stem Cell Research; Transplants / Organ Donations
Article Date: 25 Jun 2013 – 1:00 PDT
Current ratings for:
Some Older Patients With Myelodysplastic Syndromes Benefit From Stem Cell Transplants
A new study by an international team led by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute scientists provides the first statistically-based guidelines for determining whether a stem cell transplant is appropriate for older patients with myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) – the most common blood disorders in people over 60 years of age, and frequently a precursor for leukemia.
All opinions are moderated before being included (to stop spam)
Using mathematical models to analyze hundreds of MDS cases from around the world, the researchers found reduced intensity transplants of donor stem cells are advisable for patients aged 60-70 who have higher-risk forms of MDS that are likely to turn into leukemia in the near future. For patients with lower-risk MDS, non-transplant treatments are preferable, the model indicates.
MLA
Institute, Dana-Farber Cancer. “Some Older Patients With Myelodysplastic Syndromes Benefit From Stem Cell Transplants.” Medical News Today. MediLexicon, Intl., 25 Jun. 2013. Web.
6 Jul. 2013. <http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/262405.php>
Patients in the lower-risk groups who underwent transplant lived an average of 38 months after treatment, less than the 77 months for those who were treated without transplant. For patients in the higher-risk groups, by contrast, average life expectancy was 36 months for those receiving transplants, better than the 28 months for those receiving non-transplant therapies. Adjusting for patients’ quality of life did not change the conclusions regarding the relative merits of the treatments.
“It hasn’t been clear for which older patient groups the benefits of transplant outweigh the risks,” Koreth says. To find out, researchers collected data on 514 patients, age 60-70, who were newly diagnosed with MDS. For both lower- and higher-risk groups, they built separate mathematical models to compare treatment outcomes in patients who received reduced-intensity donor stem cell transplants with outcomes in patients who received non-transplant therapies. They analyzed not only length of survival but also the quality of life of patients in those groups.
Please note: If no author information is provided, the source is cited instead.
In some cases, MDS produces only mild symptoms that don’t worsen for years. In others, the symptoms can be severe, leading to the development of a fast-growing form of leukemia. The most common tool for predicting the course of MDS is the International Prognostic Scoring System (IPSS), which is based on a patient’s blood counts, percentage of immature “blast” cells in the blood or bone marrow, and occurrence of chromosomal abnormalities in these cells. Based on IPSS scores, the disease is classified as low risk, intermediate-1 or -2 risk, or high risk.
The research was reported online in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.
While these treatments are often helpful, they cannot cure the disease. The only potentially curative treatment is a donor stem cell transplant, which can, in principle, be used for patients with any stage of MDS. But because even reduced-intensity transplants are fatal in a significant minority of cases, there has been some uncertainty over the use of transplantation for older patients with MDS.
For any corrections of factual information, or to contact the editors please use our feedback form.
Please send any medical news or health news press releases to: