What is Leukemia
Leukemia is a cancer of the blood and refers to a disease of the blood-forming tissues of your body There are many types of leukemia; some types of leukemia are common in children and some in adults Leukemia usually occurs when white blood cells multiply more than normal White blood cells are powerful infection fighters, but in people with leukemia, the bone marrow produces abnormal white blood cells that do not work properly
Leukemia is a disease that can be complicated to treat depending on the type and other factors Today, however, treatments often work and the patient can be cured.
What are the symptoms of leukemia?
The symptoms of leukemia vary depending on the type of leukemia. Common leukemia symptoms include:
- Fever and chills
- Persistent fatigue, weakness
- Recurrent and serious infections
- Unwanted weight loss
- Swollen lymph nodes, enlarged liver and spleen
- Easy bleeding or bruising
- Recurrent nosebleeds
- Tiny red spots on the skin (petechiae)
- Excessive sweating at night
- Bone pain and tenderness in the bones
Whento seea doctor ?
You can see a doctor if you have recurring symptoms that may cause concern.
Leukemia symptoms are often vague and non-specific. Early leukemia is often neglected because it resembles the flu and other common illnesses, and is rarely detected during blood tests for another condition.
Why and How Does Leukemia Occur?
Although scientists are still unable to pinpoint the causes of leukemia today, it seems to develop due to a combination of genetic and environmental factors.
In general, leukemia is thought to occur when certain blood cells mutate. These mutated blood cells can grow faster, divide and even cause cells that should die to live. Over time, these abnormal cells clog healthy blood cells in the bone marrow, causing less healthy white blood cells, red blood cells and platelets to be produced, resulting in leukemia (blood cancer).
How is leukemia classified?
Experts classify leukemia according to the rate of progression and the type of cells involved. The first type of classification is related to how fast the leukemia progresses:
Acute leukemia:
In acute leukemia, the abnormal blood cells are immature blood cells and continue to multiply rapidly even though they cannot perform their normal functions. Thus, the disease worsens in parallel with the proliferation. Acute leukemia requires aggressive and timely treatment .
Chronic leukemia
There are many types of chronic leukemia. Some produce too many cells and some cause too few cells to be produced. Chronic leukemia involves more mature blood cells. These blood cells multiply or accumulate more slowly and can function normally for some time. Some forms of chronic leukemia do not initially produce early symptoms and may remain unnoticed or undiagnosed for years.
The second type of classification is according to the type of white blood cell affected:
Lymphocytic leukemia:
This type of leukemia affects lymphoid cells (lymphocytes) that form lymphoid or lymphatic tissue. Lymphatic tissue helps to form the immune system.
Myeloid leukemia:
This type of leukemia affects myeloid cells. Myeloid are cells that turn into red blood cells, white blood cells and platelet-producing cells. Leukemia prevents these cells from working properly.
What are the types of leukemia?
The main types of leukemia are as follows:
Acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL):This is the most common type of leukemia in young children. ALL can also occur in adults.
Acute myeloid leukemia (AML): AML is a common type of leukemia that can occur in children and adults. AML is the most common acute leukemia in adults.
Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL): With CLL, the most common chronic adult leukemia, you can feel well for years without the need for treatment .
Chronic myeloid leukemia (CML): This type of leukemia mainly affects adults. A person with CML may not show symptoms for months or even years before reaching a stage where the leukemia cells grow faster.
Other types of leukemia are extremely rare, including hairy cell leukemia, myelodysplastic syndromes and myeloproliferative disorders.
Leukemia Diagnosis
Doctors can diagnose chronic leukemia in routine blood tests long before symptoms start to show themselves. If this is the case, or if you have symptoms that suggest you have leukemia, you can undergo the following diagnostic tests:
Examination: Look for signs of leukemia during an examination, such as pale skin from anemia, swollen lymph nodes and enlargement of the liver and spleen.
Blood tests: A sample of blood can determine the presence of abnormal levels of red and white blood cells, platelets.
Bone marrow test: A bone marrow test is done to take a sample of bone marrow from the hip bone. The bone marrow is removed using a long and thin needle. The sample is sent to a laboratory to look for leukemia cells.
Leukemia Treatment
Leukemia treatment depends on many different factors. Leukemia treatment options are determined by age and general health, the type of leukemia you have and whether it has spread to other parts of the body, including the central nervous system.
Common treatments used to fight leukemia include
Chemotherapy: The main form of treatment for leukemia is chemotherapy. This drug treatment uses chemicals to kill leukemia cells.
Depending on the type of leukemia you have, you may use a single drug or a combination of drugs during chemotherapy. These medicines can be in pill form or injected directly into a vein.
Biological therapy:Biological therapy uses drugs that help your immune system recognize and attack leukemia cells.
Targeted therapy:Targeted therapy uses drugs that attack specific vulnerabilities in cancer cells. For example, the drug imatinib (Gleevec) aims to reduce the effect of a specific protein in the leukemia cells of people with chronic myeloid leukemia, which can help control the disease.
Radiation therapy : Radiation therapy uses X-rays and other high-energy rays to damage leukemia cells and stop them from growing. During radiation therapy, you lie on a table and a large machine moves around you while you lie down, directing radiation to sensitive points on the body.
Radiation therapy can be applied to a specific area of the body or the whole body. Radiation therapy can also be used before a stem cell transplant.
Stem cell transplant: A stem cell transplant is a procedure to replace diseased bone marrow with healthy bone marrow. Before a stem cell transplant, high doses of chemotherapy or radiation therapy are used to destroy the diseased bone marrow. Then an infusion of stem cells is given to help rebuild the bone marrow. Stem cells can be taken from a donor or, in some cases, the person’s own cells can be used for the transplant. A stem cell transplant is very similar to a bone marrow transplant.
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