Leukemia: The Disease

LEUKEMIA

Leukemia is a type of cancer which begins in the blood cells. It usually attacks the bone marrow, which is the softest part in the center of your bones. People with Leukemia have bone marrow which produces abnormal white blood cells. There are two main types of Leukemia. The first type is Chronic Leukemia that starts early in the disease and produces little abnormal white blood cells. The second type of Leukemia is Acute Leukemia which produces many abnormal white blood cells and worsens quickly. The types of Leukemia also depend on what cells are being attacked.

No one knows the exact cause of Leukemia. Although doctors have no idea why a person may get the disease, they have located some risk factors they believe may be a cause. A factor can include high levels of radiation. The radiation used in the medical field is a much smaller amount and therefore safe to use if used properly. Another factor can be chemotherapy. Some cancer patients have found that after completing chemotherapy they have developed Leukemia. The final big factor to causing the disease would be certain chemicals a person can work with. Those exposed to Benzene and Formaldehyde have a greater risk to producing Leukemia.

Early in the disease a person may have some symptoms or none at all. It all depends greatly on where the abnormal cells are located and how many of the cells there are. Early in the stage, the symptoms may not appear. Many times, doctors find the disease in just a common routine checkup. A symptom that many people know about could be bruising and bleeding very easily. Other symptoms can include night sweats, fevers, and frequent infections. There is also weight loss, pain in the joints, and feeling tired throughout the entire day. These symptoms are usually mild at first but worsen over time.

To be diagnosed for Leukemia the doctor usually begins with a normal checkup. If they believe the symptoms to be more than just a common infection, they will take blood tests. For the physical examination the doctor will search for swollen lymph nodes, spleen, and liver. The blood tests are checked for the amounts of white blood cells because Leukemia causes high amounts of white blood cells. Finally there is a biopsy. This is when the doctor will remove a small portion of the bone or some bone marrow and test it for Leukemia. This test is the only test that will give you the exact results for Leukemia or not.

Leukemia can lead to many other health problems even if you are cured of this disease. A strong support system is the only way to make it through this process. Patients with Leukemia catch other infections much quicker and easier than those who are free of the disease. The fact they catch other infections easier they sometimes take other antibiotic to help fight these common infections. Many people with Leukemia just want people there to help support them and give them as much joy as they can have in life. Leukemia is an awful disease but there is a strong promise to helping solve the disease by doctors who aren’t giving up. If the doctors aren’t giving up, then those with the disease should continue to fight too.

What treatment has the most affect on a patient with Leukemia? Will there ever be an end to Leukemia? What studies are being conducted to help find answers to end Leukemia?

3 thoughts on “Leukemia: The Disease

  1. The main reason I thought this blog was interesting was because I didn’t know that it was more common to get leukemia as a child than it was as an adult. Nobody really knows what the best treatment for leukemia is, all we can do at this point is speculate and keep researching the disease. There might be an end to leukemia just because it is such a devastating disease in todays society. Studies are being done world wide to find a cure for this disease. It’s inevitable that someday somewhere and somehow a cure will be discovered for this disease, as of now we can only cure the disease in some cases, and these cures have multiple repercussions and in some cases aren’t even worth it to use.
    http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/leukemia/DS00351

  2. Your blog was interesting. I found out more information about leukemia.
    It may be lymphocytic or myelogenous. Lymphocytic (or lymphoblastic) leukemia affects white blood cells called lymphocytes. Myelogenous leukemia affects white blood cells called myelocytes. There are four main types of leukemia, which are: Acute lymphoblastic leukemia, or ALL.
    Acute myelogenous leukemia, or AML.
    Chronic lymphocytic leukemia, or CLL.
    Chronic myelogenous leukemia, or CML.

    Here is the article I read:

    http://www.webmd.com/cancer/tc/leukemia-topic-overview

  3. I thought your blog was very interesting because I thought that leukemia was more common in children. My thoughts didn’t match the information you found though because what you said causes it isn’t what kids are usually around. I also think it’s interesting that our cancer treatments can actually cause cancer, which kind of defeats the purpose. I also think it’s interesting that this cancer has two different types that cause different things. Like other cancers, I think that by studying cells in cancerous people would help scientists understand what they are working with and how they could prevent it in the future. I personally believe that going to the doctor right away wouldn’t be what most people would do because a lot of the symptoms you listed would be brushed off for a long time. On this website I found that leukemia causes the cells that defend the body from infection are affected.

    http://www.sharecare.com/question/how-leukemia-affect-the-body

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