writes:

This is a disease of the {*filter*} cell precursors in the bone marrow. The
cells multiply abnormally, first in the marrow, then outside the marrow
in such organs as the spleen and liver. The abnormal cells secrete a
substance that causes fibrous tissue to accumulate in the marrow. The
result is anemia and various abnormalities in the platelet count and
white {*filter*} cell count. There is also an increased risk of developing
leukemia. Agnogenic myeloid metaplasia is considered a "low grade"
disease, in that, while it is not curable, progresses slowly and can
be successfully managed for long periods of time.

You can find more info on this disease in any textbook on general
internal medicine, and more detailed info in any textbook of hematology.
The disease is not common, but not rare either.

Good luck to your friend's dad. Hopefully he is under the care of a
Board-certified hematologist.

Ed Uthman, MD
Pathologist
Houston/Richmond, TX, USA

writes:

You may wish to take a look at a few good Hematology texts.  One that I
find very readable is Essential Haematology by A.V. Hoffbrand and J.E.
Pettitt.  While it is not the last word on the subject, it does do a nice
job with general hematology.  If you are looking for a good pathology
reference, you may wish to look at the old standard, Robbins Pathologic
Basis of Disease by Cotran, Kumar and Robbins.  It do a very nice job
with the chronic myeloproliferative disorders (maybe more info than you
want though).  A good internal medicine book might also be helpful
(Harrison's for one).  The best bet would be to stop by your local
medical school library and take a look at a few of these texts and see if
they are what you are looking for.  If you want more current info, a
MEDLINE search might yield some good stuff.   Good luck and I hope all
works out well.

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  KB0DER (see you on 1296MHz,33cm,70cm,2m)

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