Prevalence of bone marrow necrosis in Egyptian cancer patients referring to the National Cancer Institute

Background: bone marrow necrosis is a relatively rare entity which has been associated with a poor prognosis. it is most commonly found in patients with neoplastic disorders and severe infections. methods: the study comprised examination of 5043 bone marrow biopsy specimens performed at the national cancer institute,cairo university,over 7. years period (march 2004-march 2011). it included 5. years retrospective (2867 archived samples) and 2. years prospective (2176 samples). results: bone marrow necrosis was diagnosed in fifteen out of 5043 examined specimens with a percentage of 0.3% and ranged from mild to massive according to semiquantitative estimation. prognosis of all patients was poor with survival not exceeding 6. months from the date of marrow necrosis diagnosis. conclusion: in egyptian patients,bone marrow necrosis in association with malignancy is a rare disorder which is accompanied by a poor outcome. © 2011.