What's all the fuss about? facts and figures about bone marrow failure and conditions

Abstract

The epidemiology of bone marrow failure conditions is not well understood. Although several population-based studies conducted in the last two decades have generated a wealth of information, it is still very challenging to interpret disease incidence and prevalence, particularly due to changes in disease classification, misdiagnosis of patients, frequent underreporting and use of different referent populations to calculate rates. Despite these limitations, the available epidemiologic data have revealed significant ethnic, geographic and clinical differences in disease biology that have implications for prevention and treatment strategies. With advances made in targeted therapies facilitated by identification of molecular biomarkers and increased use of curative bone marrow transplantation approach, the natural history of these disease entities is already changing. The epidemiology of these diseases seems to be the next frontier as knowledge gained about the risk factors and pathobiologic correlates could significantly help in designing patient-specific therapies with improved outcomes.