# Non-curative therapies and their impact on the prognosis of patients with myelodysplastic syndromes– a retrospective matched-pairs analysis

## TL;DR

Non-curative treatments like iron chelation and erythropoietin improve survival and reduce leukemia risk in myelodysplastic syndrome patients compared to red blood cell transfusions alone.

## Contribution

The study provides evidence that specific non-curative therapies improve long-term outcomes in MDS patients beyond red blood cell transfusions.

## Key findings

- Iron chelation therapy significantly improved overall survival and reduced AML progression compared to red blood cell transfusions alone.
- Erythropoietin and lenalidomide also showed improved survival and lower AML progression compared to transfusions alone.
- Antithymoglobulin did not show significant improvements in survival or AML progression.

## Abstract

Allogeneic stem cell transplantation (SCT) remains the only curative therapy for patients with high-risk myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS). Due to age, comorbidities, or lack of urgency, many receive only palliative therapies to improve quality of life. Some patients remain untreated due to a lack of symptoms or low progression risk. Data on the impact of palliative therapies on overall survival (OS) and leukemia-free survival (LFS) are limited. Using the Düsseldorf MDS Registry, we compared outcomes of patients receiving red blood cell transfusions (RBCT) alone to the outcome of patients receiving RBCT combined with iron chelation therapy (ICT), erythropoietin (EPO), antithymoglobulin (ATG), or lenalidomide (LENA). Matched-pairs analysis was conducted using age, gender, and prognostic scores (Revised International Prognostic Scoring System or Chronic Myelomonocytic Leukemia-specific Prognostic Scoring System). ICT-treated patients (n = 85) had significantly improved OS (70 vs. 21 months, p < 0.001) and lower 5-year AML progression (3.5% vs. 28.2%, p < 0.001). Similar benefits were seen with EPO (n = 210; OS: 63 vs. 24 months, p < 0.001; AML: 5.7% vs. 19%, p = 0.007) and LENA (n = 30; OS: 92 vs. 57 months, p = 0.049; AML: 0% vs. 16.7%, p = 0.024). ATG (n = 11) showed no significant improvement in OS (79 vs. 64 months) or AML progression (0% vs. 18.2%). While recognizing the limitations of matched-pairs analysis versus randomized trials, our findings indicate a survival benefit from ICT, EPO, or LENA versus RBCT alone. The year of diagnosis did not independently affect OS or LFS. These results support the use of selected palliative therapies to improve long-term outcomes in MDS patients.

Treating patients with myelodysplastic syndromes with non-curative therapies beyond red blood cell transfusions like iron chelation therapy, erythropoietin, or lenalidomide has a positive impact on overall survival and leukemia-free survival.

Treating patients with myelodysplastic syndromes with non-curative therapies beyond red blood cell transfusions like iron chelation therapy, erythropoietin, or lenalidomide has a positive impact on overall survival and leukemia-free survival.