Pancytopenia Flashcards
Definition
A deficiency of blood cells of ALL lineages (but generally excludes lymphocytes)
EG:
- erythrocytes, platelets, granulocytes
Pancytopenia always means that there is bone marrow failure. True or false?
False
Causes of pancytopenia result from 1 of 2 things:
Decreased production
OR
Increased destruction
Causes of decreased production
Bone marrow failure
- inherited
- acquired (primary or secondary)
Causes of increased destruction
Hypersplenism
Causes of decreased production - INHERITED bone marrow failure
- Cancer pre-disposition
- Impaired haemopoiesis
- Congenital anomalies
Arises due to defects in DNA repair/ribosomes
Causes of decreased production - inherited bone marrow failure - give an example
Fanconi’s anaemia
Fanconis anaemia - what age do most people present
Around the age of 7
Fanconis anaemia - what is happening
Unable to correct inter-strand crosslinks (DNA damage)
Fanconis anaemia - haematological findings
Macrocytosis ->
Thrombocytopenia ->
Neutrophenia ->
Bone marrow failure
Fanconis anaemia - clinical features
Short stature
Skin pigment abnormalities (cafe a lait spots)
Causes of decreased production - ACQUIRED primary bone marrow failure
This is an intrinsic bone marrow problem so it is no longer able to make the blood cells as normal
Causes of decreased production - ACQUIRED primary bone marrow failure - idiopathic aplastic anaemia
Autoimmune attack against haemopoietic stem cells
End up with an empty marrow
Causes of decreased production - ACQUIRED primary bone marrow failure - name 3 examples
- idiopathic aplastic anaemia
- myelodysplastic syndromes
- acute leukaemia
Causes of decreased production - ACQUIRED primary bone marrow failure - idiopathic aplastic anaemia - on examination of bone marrow, what is it like
Hypocellular or aplastic
Increased fat spaces
Causes of decreased production - ACQUIRED primary bone marrow failure - myelodysplastic syndromes MDS
Dysplasia due to a defect in stem cells Hypercellular marrow (but many of these cells are going through apoptosis so this does not translate to an effective production of blood cells) Increased apoptosis
Causes of decreased production - ACQUIRED primary bone marrow failure - usually do to a problem with??
Stem cells
Causes of decreased production - ACQUIRED primary bone marrow failure - myelodysplastic syndromes MDS - there is a propensity for evolution into which condition?
Acute myeloid leukaemia