Lenalidomide – A Brief Review of its Use in Myelodysplastic Syndromes

Abstract

Myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) are a heterogeneous group of blood diseases mainly affecting older people. Deletion of the long arm of chromosome 5 (del[5q]) is reported in approximately 10–15 % of all MDS cases. Lenalidomide is an immunomodulatory, anti-cytokine and anti-angiogenic agent, which leads to red blood cells transfusion independence in patients of lower risk MDS with del(5q). This review briefly describes role of lenalidomide in treatment of lower-risk MDS with del(5q) as well as non-del-5q MDS. Recent evidence also suggest a potential role of lenalidomide in combination with other agents for treatment of higher-risk MDS