The MDS Beacon™

Phase 1 Clinical Trial Of Potential MDS Treatment, Liposomal Grb-2, Begins – A Phase 1 clinical trial of a new agent called liposomal Grb-2 will evaluate the safety and tolerability of the treatment in patients with myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) or leukemia. The trial, which is being conducted at MD Anderson Cancer Center, is still enrolling patients. Liposomal Grb-2 blocks the body’s production of the protein Grb-2, which is linked to leukemia and solid tumors. This novel treatment is being developed by the biotechnology company Bio-Path Holdings. For more information, see the Bio-Path Holdings press release (pdf) or the clinical trials registry for the study.

Medicare Denies Coverage Of Stem Cell Transplants For MDS – The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) ruled that Medicare recipients with MDS will not receive coverage for donor stem cell transplantation unless participating in a qualified clinical trial. CMS decided that previous studies have not shown that transplants improve outcomes of Medicare recipients with MDS. However, in the interest of further studying the efficacy of transplantation for MDS, Medicare will cover transplantation costs for patients participating in certain clinical trials investigating transplants in Medicare beneficiaries. These include studies that investigate whether transplantation improves outcome, factors that predict outcome, or what treatment facility characteristics improve outcome. For more information, see the CMS Decision Memo.