Baptist MD Anderson Cancer Center part of largest national research trial to study causes and genetics of blood diseases

Baptist MD Anderson Cancer Center has been named part of a national study that will collect data to better understand, diagnose and treat blood diseases.

Myelodysplastic syndromes , blood conditions that affect the bone marrow, are serious and sometimes fatal. The National Myelodysplastic Syndromes Natural History Study (The National MDS Study) is now underway, the ECOG-ACRIN Cancer Research Group and its collaborators recently announced. This new study, funded by the National Institutes of Health’s National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, and performed in collaboration with the National Cancer Institute, will enroll up to 3,500 patients nationally, making it the largest ever prospective study of MDS in the U.S.

About 30,000 people every year develop myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), which occurs mostly in adults 60 and older and more often in men than women. MDS happens when the blood-forming cells in the bone marrow are damaged and have problems making new blood cells. Considered a type of cancer, these abnormal blood cells fail to grow properly and die sooner than normal cells, leaving affected individuals with low blood counts and a shorter lifespan. Treatment options depend on the disease severity at diagnosis and are limited in their effectiveness.

“We are looking to better understand this patient population,” said Edward Gorak, DO, MBA, MS, FACP, hematologist/oncologist with Baptist MD Anderson. “MDS is a rare condition and not much is known about it. Part of the NIH mission is to study rare and unknown diseases. Baptist MD Anderson is proud to be a part of that mission to provide solutions and hope to patients and their families.”

Detailed information and biological samples will be collected nationally from 2,000 adults with myelodysplastic syndromes and 500 more patients receiving care for a persistent low red blood cell count (anemia) that cannot be explained. Its purpose is to build a national resource to be used by scientists in future research. A third group will be formed as a comparison cohort by selecting 1,000 patients who will be screened in the study because of symptoms of MDS, but who will be found to not actually have one of the blood disorders.

Researchers hope this study will help to identify the causes and genetic makeup of these serious and sometimes fatal diseases. Other research could lead to new and better ways to diagnosis and treat these conditions. Common symptoms of MDS include fatigue, unusual bleeding, bruises, and tiny red marks under the skin, paleness, and shortness of breath.

Many people with MDS develop a serious or life-threatening anemia. About one-third of people with MDS will develop acute myeloid leukemia, an aggressive blood cancer.

Anyone with this blood disease who is interested in being a part of the study at Baptist MD Anderson Cancer Center can contact 904.202.7468. For more information about the national study, go to The National MDS Study