Prognosis and therapy of secondary myelodysplastic syndromes

This is an invited review of a condition that is likely to become increasingly frequent in coming years. The objective is to define the varying prognoses of the condition and to discuss treatment options for patients with better and worse prognoses. The source of the data is the literature. Of particular note are the paper by Greenberg et al. describing the International Prognostic Scoring System for MDS and that by Estey et al. describing the similar response of AML, RAEB-t, and RAEB to AML-type chemotherapy. The state of the art is that no satisfactory therapeutic options exist; consequently, the majority of patients with secondary MDS should participate in clinical trials.