Anemia in Blood Cancers Associated wtih low Erythropoietin Response

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Zhonghua Xue Ye Xue Za Zhi. 2006 Aug;27(8):543-5.[study on serum

erythropoietin levels in patients with hematologic malignancies]

[Article in Chinese]

Han B, Shi YK, Zhu J, He XH, Lin NJ, Li SL, Shen T.

Department of Hematology, Peking Union Medical College Hospital,

Beijing, China.

OBJECTIVE: To study whether hematologic malignancy patients with

anemia have a lower erythropoietin (EPO) response.

METHODS: Serum EPO levels were detected by ELISA in patients with

hematologic malignancies and with iron deficiency anemia (IDA).

Eighty patients with hematologic malignancies, including 13 multiple

myeloma (MM), 7 chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and 60 non-

Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) were studied. Thirty of them had anemia(21

NHL,6 MM and 3 CLL). Twenty patients with IDA were studied as the

control.

RESULTS: Hematologic malignancy patients with anemia had higher EPO

levels [(97.8 +/- 183.9) IU/L] than those with normal Hb values

[(27.8 +/- 85.4) IU/L; P <0.01]. In patients with IDA, serum EPO

response was inversely correlated with Hb level (r= -0.5, P <0.05) ,

but no such inverse correlation was found in the hematologic

malignancy patients with anemia (r = -0.14). After corrected for Hb

level, the serum EPO levels were significantly lower in anemic

patients with hematologic malignancies than in IDA patients (P =

0.032) , indicating a decreased EPO response in the former group.

CONCLUSION: Anemia associated with hematologic malignancy might

result from an inappropriately low EPO response. EPO treatment for

these patients may be beneficial.

PMID: 17172129 [PubMed - in process]