title: New uses for old vitamins. The treatment of myelodysplastic disorders.
abstract: The treatment of myelodysplastic disorders with vitamins A and D or derivatives and nutrients has been less than satisfactory. Combinations of vitamin D3 and 13-CRA with or without cytosine arabinoside appear to offer no advantage over any of the single agents alone. Until other vitamin D derivatives are developed that are effective but do not cause hypercalcemia, vitamin D3 cannot be recommended for the treatment of MDS. 13-CRA has been shown to be effective in some patients with MDS; however, it cannot be recommended as standard therapy because of the conflicting data cited above. Further clinical trials with 13-CRA perhaps in combination with vitamin E or colony-stimulating factors are clearly indicated for this disease for which we have no effective therapy.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville.
authors.forename: D L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: McCarley
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D009190:Myelodysplastic Syndromes / Q000178:diet therapy*; D014801:Vitamin A / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D014807:Vitamin D / Q000627:therapeutic use*
chemical_list: D014801:Vitamin A; D014807:Vitamin D