The epidemiology, diagnosis and treatment of myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) varies across the globe. In resource-limited countries, the diagnosis of MDS can be challenging – and databases with up-to-date information on the epidemiology of MDS is also not always available. Access to the latest technologies for diagnosis and treatment of patients can also be challenging.

In this roundtable discussion, Amer Zeidan, MBBS, Yale University and Yale Cancer Center, New Haven, CT chairs an excellent session discussing the epidemiology, diagnosis and treatment of MDS around the world. Dr Zeidan is joined by Anne Mwirigi, BSc, MBChB, MRCP, FRCPath, Aga Khan Hospital, Nairobi, Kenya, David Gomez-Almaguer, MD, Hospital Universitario UANL, Monterrey, Mexico, Mariana Guaraná, MD, Hemorio Institute, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Rishi Dhawan, MD, MRCP, DM, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Delhi, India and Iman Abou Dallé, MD, Naef K. Bassile Cancer Institute, American University of Beirut Medical Centre, Lebanon.