Thought of as a benign disorder for many years, Myelodysplastic Syndrome (MDS) is known to pose a significant threat to people it impacts. Recent studies have shown that MDS is in fact a malignant disease that may further lead to leukemia. Because of this fact, Myelodysplastic Syndrome can also be called pre-leukemia disease.
MDS
Similar to leukemia, MDS activates an overproduction of abnormal blood cells which eventually outnumber their healthy counterparts. The cells involved in causing the disease are called blasts and they arise from the bone marrow. Dysfunctional blasts multiply at abnormally rapid prices and accumulate in the marrow or in the bloodstream.
These functionless cells perturb the production of normal blood cells, causing a drop in the amount of red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets. Because of this, people who suffer with MDS also have anemia, (because of fewer red blood cells), impaired immune system (because of fewer white blood cells) and experience slow recovery (because of fewer platelets). Many patients diagnosed with MDS are in danger of developing leukemia.
Treatments
So as to block the development of MDS and to avoid the incidence of leukemia, most patients receive treatments with decitabine, a new medication that’s currently under testing. Although most patients diagnosed with MDS respond well to treatments with moderate chemotherapy medications and decitabine, they generally experience relapse after completing the prescribed class of drugs. MDS has a pronounced recurrent character and despite its high curability at the beginning phases of this disease, it becomes very difficult to treat in later stages of development.
Oncologists have noticed that patients who snore become less responsive to instant remedies. The precise reasons why many patients with MDS don’t respond to re-treatment are still unknown. However, this issue might be fixed by extending the length of initial treatments. Medical scientists explain a single long-term course of chemotherapy drugs and decitabine may provide better outcomes than frequently repeated briefer treatments.
Final note
They sustain that by stretching the treatment with moderate chemotherapy drugs and decitabine past the perimeter of remission, patients with MDS are less likely to relapse. Moreover, medical scientists maintain that patients who achieve remission must follow ongoing care treatments to be able to avoid the recurrence of their disease.
Recently ran experiments have confirmed that long-term remedies provide better outcomes than repeated treatments in beating MDS. Patients who receive short-term remedies not only experience relapse, but they’re also more vulnerable to developing acute leukemia and other severe forms of blood cancer. So as to stop this from occurring, an protracted low-dose preliminary treatment with decitabine followed by maintenance treatments may be the best choice for patients diagnosed with MDS.
