The role of androgen therapy in acquired aplastic anemia and other bone marrow failure syndromes

Bone marrow failure Bone marrow failure: A condition that occurs when the bone marrow stops making enough healthy blood cells. The most common of these rare diseases are aplastic anemia, myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) and paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (PNH). Bone marrow failure can be acquired (begin any time in life) or can be… syndromes are a heterogeneous group of diseases. With the major advancements in diagnostic tools and sequencing techniques, these diseases may be better classified and therapies may be further tailored. Androgens Androgens: Androgens are natural male hormones that can cause your bone marrow to make more red blood cells. This can improve anemia. Androgens are sometimes used to treat aplastic anemia and PNH. Androgens that may be used include: Danazol (Danacrine®) Fluoxymestrone (Halotestin®) Oxymetholone … , a historic group of drugs, were found to stimulate hematopoiesis hematopoiesis: (hi-mat-uh-poy-EE-suss) The process of making blood cells in the bone marrow. by enhancing the responsiveness of progenitors. These agents have been used for decades to treat different forms of bone marrow failure. With the availability of more effective pathways to treat BMF, androgens are less used currently. Nevertheless, this group of drugs may serve BMF patients where standard therapy is contraindicated or not available. In this article, we review the published literature addressing the use of androgens in BMF patients and we make recommendations on how to best use this class of drugs within the current therapeutic landscape.