Myelodysplastic Syndromes Treatment
At Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University, our specialized clinicians use innovative treatments and procedures that improve care for patients with myelodysplastic syndromes.
Treating Your Myelodysplastic Syndrome
Myelodysplastic syndromes, or myelodysplastic neoplasms, are complex and require a highly skilled team of medical professionals to treat. At Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University, we have the technology and expertise to treat your myelodysplastic syndrome.
Treatment Options
Depending on your diagnosis and the specifics of your myelodysplastic syndrome, your treatment options will vary and may include:
Blood Counts Monitoring
Some patients with myelodysplastic syndromes may have only mildly reduced blood cell counts or few symptoms and might not need to be treated right away.
Erythropoietin Stimulating Agents
Erythropoietin stimulating agents stimulate the bone marrow to make more red blood cells. The use of these agents for eligible patients with myelodysplastic syndromes can help to alleviate a low red blood cell count (anemia).
Erythroid Maturation Agents
Erythroid maturation agents can also work to increase the number of red blood cells, but act differently than erythropoietin stimulating agents to alleviate anemia. Luspatercept, an erythroid maturation agent, was engineered to interact with molecules that affect cell processes and is approved for specific subtypes of myelodysplastic syndromes.
Immunomodulatory Agents
Immunomodulatory agents impact the body’s immune system. In the treatment of myelodysplastic syndromes, the oral medication lenalidomide has been used primarily on patients with a defined subtype of myelodysplastic syndromes harboring a specific chromosomal abnormality (5q deletion).
Targeted Therapy
Targeted therapy is a specialized form of cancer treatment that aims to identify and attack specific molecules or pathways involved in the growth and spread of cancer cells. Certain targeted inhibitors are used to treat patients whose myelodysplastic syndromes has come back after treatment or who have not responded well to treatment.
Chemotherapy
FDA-approved chemotherapy treatments include hypomethylating agents such as azacytidine and decitabine, and the combination of decitabine and cedazuridine. Chemotherapy can be an effective treatment for myelodysplastic syndromes, but is not curative and is usually used in patients with advanced disease.
Bone Marrow and Stem Cell Transplantation
This treatment consists of destroying cancerous bone marrow cells using higher doses of chemotherapy and replacing them with healthy bone marrow or stem cells to help patients build a new and healthy immune system. Winship has pioneered many advances in bone marrow transplant procedures and drugs.
Clinical Trials at Winship
One of your best treatment options may be participation in a clinical trial. Consider talking with your doctor about participating in a clinical trial at Winship. Our patients can access some of the most advanced cancer treatments and clinical trials for MDS and acute leukemias. Contact your care team to learn of new clinical trials that may be opening soon.
Myelodysplastic Syndromes Treatment Support
In addition to delivering the highest quality medical care, we recognize the importance of the psychological and emotional aspects of living with a cancer diagnosis and of dealing with treatment. Our supportive oncology team addresses these issues in a timely manner with additional support from counselors, dietitians, social service professionals and others. This team will be with you every step of the way, supporting you throughout your experience.