title: Myelodysplasia. The clinical spectrum of 51 patients.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Over a 15 year period, the authors followed 51 male patients with myelodysplastic syndromes whose clinical findings, laboratory data, and evolution demonstrated a wide spectrum of disease.
  
  
  METHODS
  The following characteristics were assessed: age at diagnosis, risk factors, clinical presentation, laboratory features, category of myelodysplasia, leukemic conversion, and overall survival.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The clinical manifestations included hemolytic episodes in two patients, antibody-mediated thrombopenia in one, marked marrow fibrosis in two; thrombocytosis in three, and simultaneous lymphoproliferative disorders in two. There were 21 patients whose marrow was either normo- or hypocellular. Six patients presented with single cytopenia but not anemia. There were six instances of overlapping of the French-American-British classification. Eighteen patients progressed to acute leukemia and 1 to chronic myelomonocytic leukemia.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These observations indicate that patients with myelodysplastic syndromes may have single cytopenia without anemia that progresses to acute leukemia and may, rarely, evolve into chronic myelomonocytic leukemia. The clinical aspects of these syndromes may include autoimmune phenomena and myeloproliferative features.
authors.affiliation: Section of Hematology/Oncology, West Haven Veterans Administration Medical Center, Connecticut, USA.
authors.forename: Y H
authors.initials: YH
authors.lastname: Ahmad
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kiehl
authors.forename: R J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Papac
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D006801:Humans; D007938:Leukemia / Q000209:etiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009190:Myelodysplastic Syndromes / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000235:genetics; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors