Incidence of Myelodysplastic Syndromes in a Major Canadian Metropolitan Area

Jonathan Slack; Leonard Nguyen; Christopher Naugler; Fariborz Rashid-Kolvear

doi:10.1373/jalm.2018.026500

Incidence of Myelodysplastic Syndromes in a Major Canadian Metropolitan Area

J Appl Lab Med. 2018 Nov 1;3(3):378-383. doi: 10.1373/jalm.2018.026500.

Authors

Jonathan Slack^{1

2}, Leonard Nguyen¹, Christopher Naugler^{1

2

3}, Fariborz Rashid-Kolvear^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada.
² Calgary Laboratory Services, Calgary, AB, Canada.
³ Departments of Family Medicine and Community Health Sciences, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada.

PMID: 33636921
DOI: 10.1373/jalm.2018.026500

Abstract

Background: Myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) are a heterogeneous group of clonal stem cell disorders that can progress to acute myeloid leukemia. In many regions of the world, the epidemiology of MDS is poorly described. This study determines the crude incidence of MDS in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, with new cases diagnosed using the revised 2008 WHO criteria.

Methods: For the study period of January 1, 2011 to December 31, 2015, incident cases of MDS were identified from a centralized database maintained by Calgary Laboratory Services' Cancer Cytogenetics Laboratory, which receives and analyzes patient bone marrow samples from southern Alberta.

Results: The Calgary metropolitan area had a total incidence rate of 2.60 MDS cases per 100000 person years, corresponding to an age-standardized incidence of 3.69 for Canada. The male-to-female sex ratio was 1.35, and the median age at diagnosis was 75 years. With these results, 1295 new annual cases of MDS were predicted in Canada.

Conclusions: The reported incidence rate, sex, and age distribution were consistent with data around the world including several developing nations. This is the first study to provide information regarding the epidemiology of MDS within Canada.