Leukemia
If you are suffering from leukemia, you will have to face many new challenges. These challenges will also be there for your family and close friends. You may worry about how the disease will affect your ability to live a normal life, take care of your family, work, leisure activities and friendships. Research is still being done to explain the causes. Men are more prone to cancer than women. Acute myelogenous leukemia (AML) is most common in adults and causes the rapid development of immature white blood cells in the bone marrow crowding out normal cells and spreading these non-functioning cells throughout the body. This interferes in the work of normal blood cells. Chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) causes an increased unregulated growth of myeloid cells in the bone marrow and an elevated amount of white blood cells in the blood. Severe anemia is a result of this overabundance of white cells. The type a person has usually depends on the type of abnormal white blood cells that are being produced in the body. This disease produces abnormal or immature white blood cells in the bone marrow. At an early development of white blood cells, a blast is the immature form of white blood cells. This is the stage between the stem cell in the bone marrow and the mature blood. Blasts (immature blood cells) are found in limited numbers in the bone marrow of healthy people and not at all in the blood stream. Some people may have high numbers of blasts in the bone marrow and even circulating throughout the circulatory system. Most people know that a bone marrow transplant is the final option for a cure. A patient must find a matching donor so their body does not reject the stem cells taken from the bone marrow of the donor. Usually the matching donor is of the same race or descent as the patient. A German usually matches with perhaps an American of German descent. Or a Chinese American might match with a Chinese donor and so on. It is common for many patients to get depressed and anxious after being diagnosed with the disease. Some people get angry and resentful about their condition, while others feel helpless and overwhelmed. AML-type leukemia may cause:
Specific AML symptoms include, local infections such as laryngitis, joint pain and abdominal fullness. Top of Page Risk Factors...With treatment, prognosis varies. Survival rates have risen dramatically in the last 40 years with improvements in diagnosis and treatment. Children between 2 and 8 have the best survival rate (around 50%) but overall, treatment does induce remission in about 90% of cases. There are many tests such as:
The different types are grouped as acute or chronic. Acute leukemia usually produces immature white blood cells that are non-functioning. These cells rapidly reproduce and crowd out the healthy cells. Chronic leukemia produces abnormal blood cells that don't function as well as normal blood cells. These forms of leukemia are slower acting on the body than the acute forms of leukemia. Cigarette smoking seems to have an important link. This is probably due to the chemicals such as benzene, polonium-210 and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. Certain chemotherapy drugs especially alkylating agents combined with ionizing radiation may cause it. Some diseases caused by abnormal chromosomes may increase the risk. "Philadelphia chromosome" is a specific chromosomal abnormality in which parts of two chromosomes swap places. This can lead to acute myelogenous. If you or a loved one are living with cancer and looking for support, I strongly urge you to look into the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. It could be life-changing. Treatment...Chemotherapy is one way, though this may take too much time. In fact, treatment using this method can take a period of not less than two years. Another way of treating the condition is by fixing the bone marrow problem. This method is expensive and is done in very few countries since it involves use of sophisticated instruments and highly experienced medics. Support groups and counseling can work wonders for patients. Just talking about their concerns, worries and feelings can make them feel better. There are some patients who rather suffer alone than burden their family with their worries and concerns. These patients can benefit a lot just by talking to a neutral person, who can be a professional counselor, social worker or a clergyman. AML is incurable and often found in patients 60 years of age and above; but less common in children. Acute lymphocytic (ALL) is most common among children under the age of fifteen. In this type, the rapid multiplying of malignant immature white blood cells crowds out normal white cells. This responds well to treatment if it is diagnosed in time. In chronic lymphocytic CLL) a defective white blood cell is produced in overabundance. This cell does not fight infection and crowds out the healthy cells. Often the chronic lymphocytic leukemia is only discovered after a blood test when the elevated white blood cell count is found. Certain genetic conditions are also likely to make one develop the condition of Leukemia. It has been said that cancer is reported in certain families. This is attributable to genetics. Sometimes children who have Down syndrome conditions have higher chances of getting Leukemia. Nutritional supplements help support the healthy function of the immune system, and in particular, the white blood cells. In addition, some nutritional supplements are able to kill cancer cells.
High doses of radiation such as around the failed nuclear reactor at Chernobyl or military exposure during the nuclear detonations in the 1950's show a strong link. Exposure to benzene, herbicides and pesticides have been linked as well. Leukemia is actually a very tricky disease that may be very hard to diagnose at early stages, but there are certain cautionary measures that can be undertaken to prevent the disease. These measures will also have to do with changes in one's lifestyle. People are actually advised to avoid exposing themselves to herbicides, insecticides and other chemicals to reduce the risks of contacting the disease. Unfortunately, there is a shortage of matching donors in minority patients. Therefore, if an end stage patient is unable to find a matching donor, the result could be death. This is especially true in the African American community. About 8% of donors in the Bone Marrow Registry are African Americans. Up to 80% of African American patients in need of a bone marrow transplant are unable to find a match. Signs of acute leukemia may include:
Sometimes the onset of symptoms is more gradual with low grade fever, weakness, chills, recurrent infections or lassitude, lasting for days or months before visual symptoms occur. Statistics show us that the disease is common with men, and the chances are higher in developed countries, and particularly with white people. In the United States alone, close to 30,000 cases of adults and about 2,000 children are diagnosed annually. If it has spread to the brain may produce central nervous system effects, such as headaches, seizures, weakness, blurred vision, balance difficulties, or vomiting. Leukemia cells may spread to the gums, causing swelling, pain, and bleeding. Chemotherapy - basically the chemicals needed to kill off the cancer cells are fed into you intravenously. Acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL), a type of blood cancer, causes damage and possible death by crowding the normal blood cells in the bone marrow and will eventually spread to other organs. ALL is commonly found in children but also found in adults and if left untreated can be fatal. The risk of getting ALL goes up in people age 45 and will go up again as you grow older. Chronic Lymphocytic is common in the elderly and accounts for about 25% of all new cases. Untreated, acute leukemia is usually fatal, often because of complications that result from leukemic cells infiltrating into the bone marrow or vital body organs. Prognosis for Acute Leukemia...Medics have argued that, in some cases, it may be in the genes of a particular bloodline. If there is a history in one's lineage, there is a high chance of striking a member of the same lineage. Medics also argue that people who exercise regularly have low chances of developing it. It is very simple for a donor to save a life. Potential donors can go to the website marrow.org and find more information on how to register. Parents of newborn babies can also donate their cord blood (or store it in case they need it). Medically, it's treated mainly with chemotherapy, although radiotherapy and biological therapy can be used in certain subtypes. It's actually a chronic problem and its treatment is not a matter of a short duration of time. Patience is thus of paramount importance. In general, nonidentical twins and other siblings of children with it have two to four times the average risk of developing the disease. Also, children who have received prior radiation or chemotherapy for other types of cancer have a higher risk of contracting it. It is more common in females than in males, in whites(specially those of Jewish extraction) and in urban and industrialized populations.
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