We are the combination of four hospitals: the General Hospital, the Children’s Hospital, the Women’s Hospital and the Traumatology, Rehabilitation and Burns Hospital. We are part of the Vall d’Hebron Barcelona Hospital Campus: a world-leading health park where healthcare plays a crucial role.
Below we will list the departments and units that form part of Vall d’Hebron Hospital and the main diseases that we treat. We will also make recommendations based on advice backed up by scientific evidence that has been shown to be effective in guaranteeing well-being and quality of life.
We will guide you from your first visit to the centre, allowing you to find all the departments and make the most of our facilities. Whatever the reason for your visit, we will explain how to get about the hospital.
These syndromes are a group of diseases characterised by insufficient blood cell production (anaemia, neutropenia and thrombocytopenia), constitutional malformations and the risk of cancer.
They are usually diagnosed in childhood but there some cases diagnosed in adults. Specifically, these syndromes are: Fanconi anaemia, dyskeratosis congenita or selectively severe congenital neutropenia, Diamond-Blackfan anaemia, Diamond-Shwachman syndrome, and amegakaryocytic thrombocytopenia.
Malformations caused by inherited bone marrow failure syndromes affect the skin, bones, heart and digestive system as well as the urinary system, the central nervous system, and others. They may also affect the area around the bone marrow.
Besides this, they also increase the predisposition to cancers such as acute myeloid leukaemia, myelodysplastic syndrome and squamous carcinoma of the head, neck and reproductive organs.
These syndromes have important biological pathways in common related to cell growth and division such as the activation of the p53 gene that is responsible for halting the cell cycle, cell ageing and cell death. In addition, mutations have been identified in more than 80 genes.
Although this is treated in childhood, once the patient reaches adulthood monitoring is very important. Early diagnosis of these syndromes is essential to ensure the patient receives appropriate treatment. The aim is to minimise toxicity at the same time as allowing genetic counselling, and implementing strategies for cancer prevention and monitoring. This treatment should focus on treating the bone marrow failure, but also any constitutional malformations and extra-haematological manifestations, in addition to cancer treatment.
A multidisciplinary team of specialists with extensive experience of these diseases is necessary to ensure optimum patient care.
The first symptoms are related to a lack of blood cell production:
There are also signs related to malformations such as:
Estimated incidence rates of the different syndromes are:
The usual tests to detect inherited bone marrow failure are:
The following methods are used to treat these pathologies:
To prevent these diseases it is important to avoid smoking, alcohol, sun exposure, and to have a balanced diet. In addition, a cancer prevention programme should be followed with regular visits to the Cancer Prevention Unit and the Ear, Nose and Throat, Maxillofacial and Gynaecology departments.
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