Leukemia - "leukemia"

Preface

Leukemia or leukemia meaning leukemia (Greek white blood cells, "white", aima, "blood") is a cancer of the blood or bone marrow, characterized by abnormal growth of blood cells, usually leukocytes (leukocytes), its acute And converts to a chronic form. It can affect the gastrointestinal tract, kidneys, lungs or other parts of the body and can also be collected in the testicles causing swelling. Leukemia is one of the most common cancers of children, but as many people think, it is not a child's illness. It is newly diagnosed in about 29,000 adults and 2000 children each year in the United States, has 4 major types and many subtypes, only some of them are common among children are doing. Leukemia spreading in the brain can cause effects of the central nervous system such as headaches, seizures, weakness, visual blur, balance difficulties, vomiting, etc. Chemotherapy used for its treatment may cause anemia there is.

Acute leukemia

Acute leukemia is a potentially curable disease characterized by a rapid increase in immature blood cells. However, only a few patients will cure with current therapies. It starts with one or several of the leukocytes which have a lost or damaged DNA sequence, which worsen very soon and may soon feel sick. It tends to occur suddenly, but some chronic breeds may exist before being diagnosed several years ago. Since malignant cells rapidly progress and accumulate, treatment becomes immediate and malignant cells flow out into the bloodstream and spread to other organs of the body. Acute leukemia must be treated immediately, but the chronic form may be monitored for a while before treatment to ensure maximal efficacy of the therapy.

Chronic leukemia

Chronic leukemia is relatively mature but is still characterized by excessive accumulation of abnormal blood cells and is often not detected for many years until it is identified in normal blood tests. It is more common between the ages of 40 and 70 and is rare among young people. It tends to worsen slowly and does not cause symptoms for years. Like many other cancers, it is a disease of old age. Doctors often develop chronic leukemia during regular examination before prominent symptoms appear. In adults, acute types of all ages occur that tend to develop chronic breeds in people of more than 40 years of age. Children with slow-growing chronic leukemia are also seen in children, but it is very rare and in the United States is less than 50 cases each year.

Processing

Treatment of leukemia is complicated, depending on your age and health, type, and to what extent it extends. Treatment is generally considered necessary if the patient shows signs and symptoms such as low blood counts. Generally, ALL treatment is divided into several stages. In children, intensive 6-month treatment program is required after induction, and maintenance chemotherapy for 2 years thereafter is required. In low-risk children, standard treatment usually consists of three drugs (prednisone, L-asparaginase, and vincristine) in the first month of treatment. For high-risk patients, receive higher drug doses and treatment with extra chemotherapeutic agents. Follow up therapy for all patients is usually composed of support care such as intravenous nutritional therapy or treatment with oral antibiotics.

In general, treatment indications include decreased hemoglobin or platelet count, progression to the late stage of the disease, painful, disease related hyperproliferation of lymph nodes or spleen, lymphocyte doubling time (indicator of lymphocyte reproduction). Overall, the strategy is to control bone marrow and systemic disease, while providing specific treatment for the central nervous system (CNS) as needed. Once remission has been achieved, integration or "maintenance" treatment can be administered to prevent recurrence of the disease. Whatever the plan is, it is important to understand the treatment given to the patient and why it is behind it.

Conclusion

Leukemia is cancer of blood forming cells in the bone marrow. These cells collect other types of blood cells produced by the bone marrow, such as red blood cells that carry oxygen to the tissues through the body, platelets that help to form clots, and so on. Leukemia cells spread to lymph nodes or other organs that cause swelling and / or pain, also gather in the kidney, liver and spleen, which can cause expansion of these organs. They can also affect the lungs and other parts of the body. Acute forms may occur in children and young adults. The chronic form mainly occurs in the elderly, but in theory it can occur in any age group.

There is no single known cause for all of the different types of leukemia. In the study, exposure to petrochemical products such as benzene and hair dyes has led to several forms of development. The virus is linked to other formats. There is no known way to prevent the occurrence of the disease until one or more causes are found. As of 1998, it is estimated that approximately 30,800 people will be diagnosed ill in the United States each year and 21,700 will die from this disease.