The incidence of myelodysplastic syndromes in Western Greece is increasing

Abstract

Descriptive epidemiology of the myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) is always interesting and may reveal time-dependent and geographical variations, as well as occupational exposure. Epidemiological data in Greece are not available by now. We have collected and analyzed medical records of all patients with a documented diagnosis of MDS, performed by an expert hematologist and/or hematopathologist, in the geographical area of Western Greece, during the 20-year period, defined between 1990 and 2009. We have then calculated and described demographic and clinical features of the diagnosed MDS patient population, and assessed the incidence and prevalence rates of MDS in Western Greece, during the above-mentioned period. A total of 855 patients with newly diagnosed MDS have been identified. Refractory anemia was the most common subtype in both FAB and WHO classification systems and in both genders. Del-5q and RARS were more commonly encountered among females, and the dysplastic subtype of chronic myelomonocytic leukemia among males. Trisomy 8 was the most common single cytogenetic abnormality. The crude mean annual incidence rate of MDS was 6.0 per 100,000 inhabitants aged ≥15 years old (all subtypes according to FAB), and it was 4.8 per 100,000 when CMML and RAEB-T were excluded. Crude incidence rate was higher in rural than in urban areas, but this finding was not confirmed after age standardization. Age-standardized mean annual incidence rate in men was 7.9/100,000 and in women 3.4/100,000. A continuously increasing incidence rate of MDS has been observed throughout the study period.

Clinicohematological and Cytogenetic Profile of Myelodysplastic Syndromes in Pakistan – Compare and Contrast

“…MDS is generally considered a preleukemic disorder and is prevalent in elder individuals in western world [5]. However, median age at diagnosis in our study was younger which concurs with other studies done in Asia [1][2][3][4][6][7][8] as compared to the studies from west with higher median age in MDS (Greece, Germany, Poland) [10,14,15]. In our study we observed male predominance which is universally seen in this disorder [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8].…”

“…In our study we observed male predominance which is universally seen in this disorder [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8]. However, male to female ratio was 3:1 which is slightly higher as compared to previous studies [1-4, 6, 7] and somewhat comparable to what has been observed in Greece [10]. The possible explanation of gender in our region could be low literacy rate in our country and male predominant society where females seek medical attention less frequently.…”

“…2). Mean hemoglobin (Hb), total leukocyte count (TLC), platelets, MCV at baseline and subtypes of MDS as per WHO classification in comparison with other national and international studies is shown in Table 1 [1][2][3][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15].…”

Cytogenetic and molecular basis of BCR-ABL myelodysplastic syndrome: diagnosis and prognostic approach

“…This finding was in contrast to some extensive studies of the epidemiology of different subtypes of MDS, which indicate that RA, RARS, RAEB, and RAEBt are the most common subtypes, respectively. [17,36] There was a relatively poor prognosis in these patients. Only 5 patients responded to treatment, among which 2 cases were treated with imatinib.…”

Occupational, dietary, and other risk factors for myelodysplastic syndromes in Western Greece

“…We have conducted a retrospective epidemiological study on the incidence of MDS in this region, during the period 1990-2009, which revealed an increasing trend for diagnosing an MDS. This was mainly attributed to an increase of RA and RARS, whereas the incidence of RAEB and CMML remained rather stable over the study period [3]. The observed increasing trend in the incidence of MDS in Western Greece led us to search for potential risk factors in this particular region.…”