Top 5 Most-Read Myelodysplastic Syndromes Articles of 2023

Articles regarding efforts to provide better stratification of patients with myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), and thus more personalized care, were among the most popular with readers of AJMC.com in 2023.

An August approval of a therapy that promises to alleviate transfusion burdens for patients with lower-risk MDS also drew readers’ attention.

Here are the most-read articles on MDS among AJMC.com readers for the year.

Reblozyl packaging | Image credit: Bristol Myers Squibb

5. FDA Approves Luspatercept as First-Line Anemia Treatment in Patients With Lower-Risk MDS

Approval for luspatercept, sold as Reblozyl, came following positive results in the COMMANDS trial, which was presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) in June 2023. Approval covered patients who may need red blood cell transfusions and have not received erythropoiesis-stimulating agents. In the COMMANDS trial, twice as many patients achieved transfusion independence of at least 12 weeks and saw their hemoglobin increase compared to epoetin alfa, the previous standard treatment.

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4. Validating a New Scoring System in MDS for the Era of Next-Generation Sequencing

This article discussed an abstract and poster presented at ASCO 2023 regarding efforts to validate an update of the International Prognostic Scoring System (IPSS) designed to incorporate data on mutations obtained through next-generation sequencing (NGS). Investigators from Columbia University reported that the revision, known as IPSS-M, can provide useful information at the time of a diagnosis with MDS, but only works during that limited time frame.

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3. Gilead Discontinues Phase 3 ENHANCE Trial of Magrolimab/Azacitidine in Higher-Risk MDS

This trial, (NCT04313881), was evaluating the first-line combination of magrolimab and azacitidine (Vidaza) vs placebo plus azacitidine in patients with higher-risk MDS; Gilead announced July 21, 2023, that the trial had been discontinued due to futility at a planned analysis, according to an announcement from the company. Officials said the news “confirms the challenges of treating higher-risk MDS, where no new class of treatments have been approved in nearly 20 years.”

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2. Study Explores Risk Factors for Therapy-Related MDS, AML Following HCT for Multiple Myeloma

This summary of a study appearing in Translation and Cellular Therapy discussed findings that older age and male gender when diagnosed with multiple myeloma both increased a person’s risk of developing treatment-related MDS or acute myeloid leukemia following autologous hematopoietic cell transplantation (auto-HCT). Receiving high-dose chemotherapy and auto-HCT for multiple myeloma is known to increase the risk of developing second primary malignancies, including treatment-related MDS and AML, and the authors sought to identify additional risk factors for secondary malignancies.

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1. Updates Are Driving the Field of MDS Forward, but Changes Still Needed

The most-read article on MDS appearing on AJMC.com in 2023 summarized a review of an workshop of the International Consortium for MDS, held in June 2022. The workshop resulted in new guidelines that offered updated classification, prognostication, and response assessment of MDS. The review article, which appeared in Blood Reviews, was designed to provide guidance for physicians in clinical practice and respond to “significant changes” in the field, including updates from the World Health Organization and the International Consensus Classification (ICC). Among key changes was ICC’s creation of an “MDS/AML” classification.

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