Abstract
BackgroundMyelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) are a diverse group of clonal hematopoietic stem cell malignancies that primarily affect the elderly. Although the incidence of MDS in western countries has been well investigated, little is known about the incidence in Asian populations.MethodsTo identify the incidence of MDS in Japan, we used population-based registry data from 1993 to 2008. The data represented 33.1% of the Japanese population. A total of 7995 patients were reported to the registry with newly diagnosed MDS during the study period.ResultsMedian age at diagnosis was 76 years. Incidence sharply increased with age, particularly in those aged over 70 years. The most recent crude incidence rate of MDS was 3.8 (95% CI 3.6–4.1) cases per 100 000 for men and 2.4 (95% CI 2.2–2.6) cases per 100 000 for women in 2008. Age-adjusted incidences of MDS in 2008, standardized by the world standard population, were 1.6 and 0.8 cases per 100 000 for men and women, respectively, while incidences standardized by the 1985 Japanese population were 2.5 and 1.2 cases per 100 000 for men and women, respectively.ConclusionsOur study reveals that some elderly patients suffer from MDS in Japan, but the incidence is lower than in Western countries. In current clinical practice, many elderly MDS patients are treated with supportive therapy based on an incomplete diagnosis, suggesting that the incidence estimated in this study might still be substantially underestimated. Accurate evaluation of the health impact of MDS requires evaluation of the mortality of the disease, continued surveillance, and improvement in the quality of cancer registry data.
Highlights
Myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) are a diverse group of clonal hematopoietic stem cell malignancies in the elderly that present with persistent bone marrow failure and peripheral blood cytopenias
Incidence sharply increased with age, in those over age 70 years (Figure 1), with 3.1 cases per 100 000 men and 1.1 cases per 100 000 women in those aged 65–69 years versus 17.7 and 8.9 cases per 100 000, respectively, in those aged over 85 years
Estimated annual age-standardized incidences of MDS during the study period are shown as circles in Figure 2, and the exact rates with 95% confidence intervals (CIs), which are the basis of Figure 2, are summarized in Table
Summary
Myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) are a diverse group of clonal hematopoietic stem cell malignancies in the elderly that present with persistent bone marrow failure and peripheral blood cytopenias. Myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) are a diverse group of clonal hematopoietic stem cell malignancies that primarily affect the elderly. The incidence of MDS in western countries has been well investigated, little is known about the incidence in Asian populations. Methods: To identify the incidence of MDS in Japan, we used population-based registry data from 1993 to 2008. Conclusions: Our study reveals that some elderly patients suffer from MDS in Japan, but the incidence is lower than in Western countries. Many elderly MDS patients are treated with supportive therapy based on an incomplete diagnosis, suggesting that the incidence estimated in this study might still be substantially underestimated. Accurate evaluation of the health impact of MDS requires evaluation of the mortality of the disease, continued surveillance, and improvement in the quality of cancer registry data
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