Prognostic implications in myelodysplastic syndromes: A review of 62 cases

We retrospectively reviewed 62 MDS patients (15 RA, 3 RARS, 10 CMML, 20 RAEB, 14 RAEBT) to clarify the current problems in their management. Median survival of RA and RARS patients was 67.9 months and significantly longer than that of CMML, RAEB, or RAEB-T patients with median survivals of 16.1, 16.8, and 9.5 months, respectively. Karyotypic abnormalities were observed in 58% of the patients examined. Forty-two patients died, 16 (38%) of leukemic transformation and 21(50%) of bone marrow failure. While most of the RAEB-T patients of all ages and all the RAEB patients diagnosed below 60 years of age died of transformation, 70% of the older RAEB patients died of infection. Prognosis after transformation was poor and 12 patients died within two months. These results indicate that management after transformation and treatment against infection in RAEB patients with advanced age are crucial to improve the prognosis in MDS.