Leukemia (pronounced loo-KEE-mee-uh) is a form of cancer (see cancer entry) in which the body produces too many white blood cells. Many forms of leukemia have been identified. They are divided into two general types: acute and chronic. An acute condition comes on fairly quickly. A chronic disorder develops more slowly over time.
A cancer of the blood-forming tissues characterized by a large increase in the numbers of white blood cells (leukocytes) in the circulation or bone marrow is Leukemia. When in leukemia, white blood cells are produced in the bone marrow and lymph system is immature and abnormal. These white blood cells are called leukocytes.
Chronic leukemia often goes undetected for many years until it is identified in a routine blood test. In fact, nearly one in five chronic leukemia patients have no symptoms at the time of their diagnosis. Most symptoms of acute leukemia are caused by a lack of normal blood cells. This is due to overcrowding of the blood-forming bone marrow by leukemia cells.
Leukemia is a cancer that starts in the organs that make blood, namely the bone marrow (the soft inner part of the bone) and the lymph system. In leukemia, abnormal and immature white blood cells are produced in the bone marrow and lymph system. The immature white blood cells are called leukocytes.
Leukemia is cancer of the blood cells. It begins in the bone marrow when abnormal cells multiply out of control to such an extent that normal blood cells are unable to develop. Leukemia starts in the bone marrow—the soft, spongy material inside bones where blood cells develop from stem cells. Leukemia most often affects the white blood cells, which protect the body against infection. The disease begins when normal development of stem cells into white blood cells goes wrong, creating abnormal white blood cells.
Leukemia disrupts this normal process by introducing a large number of abnormal white blood cells which don't perform properly and can eventually decrease the body's ability to fight off disease.
Acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) is a fast-growing cancer in which the body produces a large number of immature white blood cells (lymphocytes). These cells can be found in the blood, bone marrow, lymph nodes, spleen, and other organs.
Symptoms
There are many symptoms of leukemia and everyone will not experience the same symptoms. Some of the symptoms are: Weakness or chronic fatigue, Fever of unknown origin, weight loss that is not due to dieting or exercise, Frequent bacterial or viral infections, Headaches, Skin rash, Non-specific bone pain, Easy bruising, Bleeding from gums or nose, Blood in urine or stools, Enlarged lymph nodes and/or spleen, and Abdominal fullness.
Treatment
Chemotherapy is the use of drugs to kill cancer cells. Surgery is usually not an option. Surgery is usually not an option because leukemia cells can spread to all the organs via the blood stream and the lymph vessels.
Rituximab (Rituxan), may also be used alone or in combination with traditional chemotherapy. Alemtuzumab (Campath) is approved for treatment of patients with CLL that have not responded to fludarabine. Rarely, radiation may be used for enlarged lymph nodes. Blood transfusions or platelet transfusions may be required. Stem cell transplantation may be used in advances stages of CLL.
