[Greg H]

Hi Hugh!

Sorry to hear about your MDS diagnosis; but it sounds as though you have fairly stable disease, which is a very good thing.

The more I have read about MDS -- and about cancer generally -- the more all roads lead to a single fact: Cancer, MDS included, is about genetic mutations gone awry. Something causes a mutation, that messes up some signaling pathway for this or that vital process, and the whole snafu gradually snowballs until you wind up with a tumor someplace, or with messed up bone marrow.

The number of factors that can set off that initial mutation (or stoke the fire once the spark is lit) is legion: alcohol, tobacco smoke, pesticides, cured meat, smog, industrial chemicals, household chemicals, too much exposure to the sun, even unprovoked attacks by your own immune system . . . the list is literally endless.

The list is endless, in my understanding, because we are creatures prone to mutation. After all, it was successful mutations that got us walking upright and carrying around these big brains. The less successful mutations, unfortunately, mostly try to kill us.

It wouldn't surprise me a bit to find that the list of things that can cause mutations includes exposure to high voltage electrical fields, though I haven't run across any data on that specifically.

Most of what you read about factors linked to MDS cite only a few things: benzene, alcohol (though I have yet to find an actual study on that one), and previous cancer treatment with radiation or chemotherapy.

That's probably not a very satisfying answer, but I hope it's of some use. Here's hoping your counts remain manageable.

Take care!

Greg