Leukemia

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Overview

Leukemia is a form of cancer that begins in the blood-forming cells of the bone marrow—the soft, inner part of the bones. Leukemia, which literally means "white blood" in Greek, occurs when there is an excess of abnormal white blood cells in the blood. Known as leukocytes, these cells are so plentiful in some patients that the blood actually has a whitish tinge.

Under normal circumstances, the blood-forming (hematopoietic) cells of the bone marrow make leukocytes to defend the body against infectious organisms, such as viruses and bacteria. If some leukocytes are damaged and remain in an immature form, they become poor infection fighters that multiply excessively and do not die off as they should.

These damaged leukemic cells accumulate and lessen the production of oxygen-carrying red blood cells (erythrocytes), blood-clotting cells (platelets), and normal leukocytes. If untreated, the surplus leukemic cells overwhelm the bone marrow, enter the bloodstream, and eventually invade other parts of the body, such as the lymph nodes, spleen, liver, and central nervous system (brain, spinal cord). In this way, the behavior of leukemia is different than that of other cancers, which usually begin in major organs and ultimately spread to the bone marrow.

There are more than a dozen varieties of leukemia, but the following 4 types are the most common:

• Acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL)
• Acute myelogenous leukemia (AML)
• Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL)
• Chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML)

Acute leukemias usually develop suddenly, whereas some chronic varieties may exist for years before they are diagnosed.

Leukemia Facts & Figures
Leukemia often is thought to be a childhood disease. In fact, leukemia strikes 10 times as many adults as children. According to the American Cancer Society (ACS), about 44,240 new leukemia cases were diagnosed in the United States in 2007. Acute myelogenous leukemia (AML) is the most frequently reported form of leukemia in adults, and approximately 13,410 new cases were reported in 2007.

About 41% of all leukemias diagnosed are chronic—an estimated 15,340 chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) cases and 4,570 chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) cases were diagnosed in 2007. In addition, hairy cell leukemia (HCL), a slow-growing lymphocytic cancer, accounts for about 2% of all leukemias.

Chronic leukemia, like many other cancers, is a "disease of old age." The average age of patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is roughly 70 years, and the average age of chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) patients is 40 to 50 years. By contrast, acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) is largely a pediatric disease, usually occurring in children under 10 years of age.

In general, leukemia affects more men than women throughout the world. In Western countries, the male:female ratio is highest in CLL patients.

Leukemia, Overview reprinted with permission from oncologychannel.com
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