Interesting article on blood production and aging

[jointpain]

theguardian.com/science/202... The above link mentions stem cell numbers and mutations in them causing dramatic changes in blood cell production, and old age as a reason or by product of the drop in stem cell numbers. Could this be MPN research?

[Whitehair51]

I wondered why I have gone to pot over the past year!

[clematis26]

Thank you for this - very interesting. Hope all is well with you.

[TLJ-1]

This is not exactly research on MPN. It is of much broader interest than that. However, the research cited in the link could draw more attention to the idea of the diversity of blood stem cells, thus stimulating more research in an area that could ultimately benefit those of us with an MPN. A major problem we have is that the numbers of people suffering from an MPN are small compared with the many who suffer from various other forms of cancer or other diseases. Understandably, much less money is invested into research that will directly benefit us. At 77, I'm on the wrong side of that diversity issue.

[Wyebird]

Thank you I enjoyed reading the article. It reminded me I have 3 and 1/2 years left before I reach 70 so I must pack in lots of adventures. It also explains why the bank will no longer cover my travel insurance ( mpn excluded)once I reach 70. Glory be I did so want to grow old disgracefully!!!🥴🤗

[Inca in reply to Wyebird]

Yeah,get on with ageing disgracefully,I have & made use of every minute.I am a bit tired &depressed at the mo but it’s a blip with a ‘Raison d’ etre’

82 now & only my close friends know that,I still have my good figure,blonde hair (real) & a good skin apart from carcinoma scars.You keep young in spirit Wye bird it’s the only way to get thru.No one is old at 70 these days,hubby & I were still breaking & training young horses then,stallions included.

Forget travel insurance,we have never had it ,we managed.Best to you.😍

[Wyebird in reply to Inca]

Sounds as if you have had and having a good life🤗

[Ebot]

Thanks for sharing. Does make me wonder where this leaves us MPNers! It also makes me wonder about the use of Hydroxy longer term in the under 70s. Questions, questions for my next consult …

[hunter5582 in reply to Ebot]

Good question to ask about hydroxy. It can do a good job controlling blood cell numbers but does so at the cost of increasing the risk of additional mutations. Like so many things with MPNs, it is all a balancing act. Do please let us know what you learn in your next appointment.

[hunter5582]

Very interesting article. It seems to combine some research into MPNs, Clonal Hematopoiesis of Indeterminate Potential (CHIP), amd maybe aging impact on telomere length. We all know that things start wearing out as we age (witness knees). It is equally true at a cellular level. Perhaps as more is learned there will be means to slow down the aging process at a cellular level.

[azaelea]

Very interesting article. Thanks for posting this. From my experience I would say after the age of 80 rather than 70. Makes me wonder about long term Hydroxy also!

[EPguy]

Thanks for the article. It's part of the idea of getting old all at once, this was my experience with Covid, Long Covid, and MPN Dx, all together in 2020.

This part uses a most familiar word: <<But problems arise when rare “driver” mutations make stem cells grow faster, often producing lower-quality blood cells as a trade-off. >>

I think our allele burden is the result of this faster growth. But in ET, PV it's usually not lower-quality blood cells, rather the cells are ok but it's too many of some while MF can be too few. In leukemia however, including ALL that is a rare result of MPN, there can be reduced quality cells, this I think includes blast phase. I know we get checked for blasts in certain tests. Leukemia in general seems to be the blood condition they are focused on in this article.

In the cited study, I checked some of the mutations they looked at. One well known to us comes up often, DNMT3A. Interesting they call it a Driver mutation. In MPN it is not normally that, but it is a known risk mutation, and can emerge with INF therapy as in other posts.

They also mention telomere, these relate to DNA aging but from what I've seen, MPN therapies that address this area have not so far seemed that promising. There may be studies otherwise however.