As September brings Leukemia and Lymphoma Awareness Month, it’s time to increase public understanding of these cancers that can affect the bone marrow, blood cells, lymph nodes and other parts of the lymphatic system. These diseases are related cancers in the sense that they probably all result from acquired mutations to the DNA of a single lymph- or blood-forming stem cell.

In the first of this two-part post, we’ll look at the symptoms, risk factors and treatment options for leukemia.

What is Leukemia?

Leukemia is a type of cancer that affects the blood and bone marrow, the spongy center of bones where our blood cells are formed. The disease develops when blood cells produced in the bone marrow grow out of control. It affects people of all ages and ethnicity and males more than females.

There are over 250,000 people living with, or in remission from leukemia in the U.S with over 43,000 new cases each year. Leukemia is the sixth most common cause of cancer deaths in men and the seventh most common in women in the U.S.

The four most common types of leukemia are:  acute myeloid leukemia (AML), acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), and chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). Each main type of leukemia is named according to the type of cell that's affected (a myeloid cell or a lymphoid cell) and whether the disease begins in mature or immature cells.

Symptoms may include: fever or chills, persistent fatigue or weakness, frequent infections, weight loss, swollen lymph nodes or enlarged liver or spleen, easy bleeding or bruising, excessive sweating, and bone pain.

Doctors often find chronic leukemia during routine blood tests or physical exams, before symptoms even occur. If a patient has abnormal levels of white blood cells or platelets and other physical signs a series of tests may be conducted to confirm the diagnosis of leukemia and determine the type and extent of the disease in the body.

Treatment is based on many factors including the type of leukemia and the age and overall health of the patient. Common treatments are chemotherapy, biological therapy to induce the immune system to destroy leukemia cells, radiation therapy, targeted therapy, and stem cell transplant.

Scientists don't understand the exact causes of leukemia. It seems to develop from a combination of genetic and environmental factors. Risk factors include:  smoking, exposure to certain chemicals such as benzene, exposure to some types of chemotherapy and radiation during previous cancer treatment, certain genetic diseases such as Down Syndrome, high levels of radiation such as that from a nuclear reactor accident, and other blood disorders such as myelodysplastic syndromes.

Check back tomorrow to learn more about the symptoms and risk factors for lymphoma.

Sources:

Mayo Clinic

Leukemia & Lymphoma Society