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Hematology With Afaf E. Osman, MD

Oncology / Hematology

Dr. Osman is an assistant professor at the University of Utah Huntsman Cancer Institute where she treats myeloid malignancies. Her research interest is in myeloid precursor conditions including clonal hematopoiesis.

MDS/MPN Overlap Syndrome: An Unfortunate Duo

Dear readers,

I want to start this newsletter by thanking you for taking time from your busy schedules to read about the latest and greatest in myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS). This month, I feature my own work describing autoimmune manifestations in chronic myelomonocytic leukemia (CMML), an MDS/MPN overlap syndrome. I featured an article discussing autoimmunity and MDS in a prior issue of this newsletter. Our recent work observes the molecular drivers of autoimmunity in CMML.

Continuing the CMML trend, the second article presents the 5-year follow-up data on azacitidine with ruxolitinib for patients with MPN/MDS overlap and CMML. This interesting combination could alleviate some of the MPN-like features and control the disease. In addition, the BMT PH&G committee recently published helpful guidelines for managing CMML patients undergoing hematopoietic stem transplant (HSCT). HSCT represents a potential curative approach for CMML, but with substantial associated risks.

Finally, we end with some good news! The FDA ODAC committee voted in favor of imtetelstat for transfusion-dependent MDS! We featured the phase 3 IMerge trial in a prior issue of this newsletter.

Best wishes,
Afaf Osman, MD

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