Congressman’s Death Underscores Need for Research Into Blood Cancer Syndrome

Newswise — The recent death of Robert Matsui "" the 14-term Congressman from California who succumbed to myelodysplastic syndrome on Jan. 1 at the age of 63 "" has placed a national spotlight on a group of poorly understood and often incurable blood cancers. Though often described as rare, myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) are estimated to strike 20,000-25,000 Americans and 87,000 people worldwide each year, making them some of the most common blood malignancies "" more common than acute myelogenous leukemia, chronic lymphocytic leukemia, or chronic myelogenous leukemia. They appear most frequently in people over the age of 60, suggesting that their numbers are likely to grow with the graying of the population. MDS is characterized by the bone marrow's inability to produce sufficient numbers of healthy blood cells and platelets. This places sufferers at increased risk of anemia, infections, and bleeding problems. Age and prior exposure to certain types of chemotherapy can be risk factors for the development of MDS. In addition to Matsui, other notable public figures who have died from MDS include Congressmen Joseph Moakley (D-MA), former presidential candidate and Congressman Paul Tsongas (D-MA), and scientist Carl Sagan. Standard treatments for the disorder "" transfusions of blood products and, in some cases, chemotherapy if the condition develops into acute myelogenous leukemia "" have not been shown to prolong survival. Stem cell transplantation from a sibling or an unrelated matched donor can offer hope to selected MDS patients, but many are too old to safely undergo such a rigorous procedure. Research is under way, however, in both the laboratory and clinic to unlock the fundamental processes that underlie the disease and to find treatments capable of sending it into remission, and several new chemotherapy drugs are showing promise. At Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Richard Stone, MD, is leading a series of clinical trials aimed at finding medications effective against the disorder. Several other investigators of the DF/HCC Leukemia Program are involved in laboratory research focused on MDS, including James Griffin, MD, Thomas Look, MD, Gary Gilliland, MD, PhD, and Dan Tenen, MD. These investigators are trying to discover the disease's molecular character, which may lead to the discovery of targets for future therapies. "MDS is clearly a disease where increased research can have a profound benefit," says Dana-Farber's Look, who is studying some of the condition's basic mechanisms. "An aging population, combined with the current lack of good therapies for the disease, makes the case for additional research especially compelling." Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (http://www.danafarber.org) is a principal teaching affiliate of the Harvard Medical School and is among the leading cancer research and care centers in the United States. It is a founding member of the Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center (DF/HCC), designated a comprehensive cancer center by the National Cancer Institute.