Myelodysplastic Syndromes (MDS) – Myelodysplastic Syndrome – Updated 2020

Types of myelodysplastic syndrome

The subtypes of myelodysplastic syndrome, according to the classification by the World Health Organization updated in 2016 are as follows:

  • Myelodysplastic syndrome with single-lineage dysplasia: Usually featuring one blood cytopenia or two.
  • Myelodysplastic syndrome with multilineage dysplasia: It may have 2 or 3 cytopenias
  • Myelodysplastic syndrome with ring sideroblasts: A type of anemia with a characteristic ring of granules.
  • Myelodysplastic syndrome with isolated deletion of 5q: Caused by deletion of a chromosome arm. It features anemia and sometimes reduced platelet count.
  • Myelodysplastic syndrome with excess blasts: A variable number of blood cytopenias with up to 20% blasts in peripheral blood.
  • Unclassifiable myelodysplastic syndrome: Characteristics of MDS but not classifiable in any of the above groups.