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Cytogenetic response to thalidomide treatment in three patients with myelodysplastic syndrome

Leukemia volume 17, pages 1200–1202 (2003)Cite this article

TO THE EDITOR

Patients with myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) have a particularly poor prognosis if their bone marrow cells show complex chromosomal aberrations. These patients rarely respond to cytotoxic or immunosuppressive treatment. Recently, thalidomide, a sedative drug with immunomodulatory and antiangiogenic properties, has emerged as a promising new treatment modality for patients with MDS.1 Several patients with low-risk MDS have been reported to become independent of blood transfusions under thalidomide treatment. In some high-risk patients, the proportion of blast cells in the bone marrow decreased significantly. Here, we report on remarkable cytogenetic remissions in addition to normalization of blood counts in three patients with MDS. Two of these patients had a poor risk karyotype (monosomy 7 and complex karyotype, respectively) according to the IPSS,2 while another patient had a 5q− anomaly.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Hematology, Oncology and Clinical Immunology, Heinrich-Heine-University, Düsseldorf, Germany

    C Strupp, U Germing, R Haas & N Gattermann

  2. Department of Human Genetics, Heinrich-Heine-University, Düsseldorf, Germany

    B Hildebrandt

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  1. C Strupp
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  2. B Hildebrandt
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  3. U Germing
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  4. R Haas
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  5. N Gattermann
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Strupp, C., Hildebrandt, B., Germing, U. et al. Cytogenetic response to thalidomide treatment in three patients with myelodysplastic syndrome. Leukemia 17, 1200–1202 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.leu.2402894

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