Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 29, 2025
Use of Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation to Assess the Origin of Myelodysplastic Syndrome
Published on: October 3, 2018
Concurrent ankylosing spondylitis and myelodysplastic syndrome: A case report
Guan-Hua Xu1, Jin Lin1, Wei-Qian Chen2
1Division of Rheumatology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou 310003, Zhejiang Province, China.
Background:
Ankylosing spondylitis (AS) is an autoimmune disease characterized by sacroiliitis and spondylitis, with a few hematological abnormalities. Myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) are a heterogeneous group of hematopoietic stem cell disorders with frequent autoimmune phenomena. The relationship between AS and MDS remains unknown.
Case Summary:
We describe a rare case of concurrent AS and MDS. An 18-year-old man with low back pain and anemia was diagnosed with AS; however, the cause of anemia could not be determined by the first bone marrow examination. He recovered from anemia and the symptoms of AS resolved after treatment with etanercept, glucocorticoid, and blood transfusion, but he developed pancytopenia with an increased myeloblast count (from 2.5% to 9%). Chromosome analysis revealed del(7q) and trisomy 8. Refractory anemia with excess of blasts-1 (RAEB-1)/MDS was confirmed by repeating the bone marrow examination. He became blood transfusion-dependent and received decitabine-based chemotherapy but eventually died.
Conclusion:
We suspect that AS may be an early autoimmune phenomenon related to MDS. However, a condition of coexistence cannot be excluded.
