Leukemia: Symptoms, Causes, and Treatment

Leukemia is a type of cancer that starts in the bone marrow, where blood is produced. Some forms of leukemia are often seen in infants, while the rest are common in adults. This is because leukemia often includes only the white blood cells, which are the fighting cells of our body. But in people with Leukemia, the bone marrow produces an excessive amount of white blood cells that do not function properly.

Some of the main symptoms of Leukemia may vary depending on the severity of the stage of leukemia.

Common signs of leukemia

• Fever or chills
• Persistent fatigue, weakness
• Frequent or severe infections
• Losing weight without trying
• Swollen lymph nodes, enlarged liver or spleen
• Easy bleeding or bruising
• Recurrent nosebleeds.

Commonly leukemia is known to occur when some blood cells acquire changes in their genetic material or DNA. The DNA tells the cell to grow at a specific rate and die at a particular time. The mutations tell the blood cells to keep growing and dividing in leukemia.

Classifications of Leukemia

Leukemia is classified into four types based on how fast they progress and the type of cells involved.

The first category involves two types based on how fast they progress:

• Acute leukemia – In this type of leukemia, the blood cells are immature and cannot carry out their everyday work, multiply rapidly, and hence the disease worsens quickly.
• Chronic leukemia – There are many types of chronic leukemia. Some produce way too many cells, and some too few. This kind of leukemia involves more mature blood cells.

The second type of category is based on the type of white blood cells affected:

• Lymphocytic leukemia: This type of leukemia targets the lymphoid cells that create the lymphatic tissue. This tissue is part of your immune system.
• Myelogenous leukemia: This kind of leukemia affects the myeloid cells. These cells give rise to our body’s white blood and red blood cells.

Types of Leukemia are:

• Acute lymphocytic leukemia is most common in children, but this can also affect adults.
• Acute myeloid leukemia – This kind of leukemia is most common in adults, but it occurs in children, too.
• Chronic lymphocytic leukemia – This is the most common chronic adult leukemia. With this leukemia, one might feel well for years without a need for treatment.
• Chronic myeloid leukemia – This kind of leukemia mainly affects adults. A person with this type of leukemia may have few or no symptoms for months or years before the cells proliferate.
• Other types – There are many more severe types of leukemia, including hairy cell leukemia, myelodysplastic syndromes, and myeloproliferative disorders.

---

Also Read: Immune-Boosting Foods

---

Causes of Leukemia:

No one for sure knows the exact cause of leukemia. People who might have it have been seen to have a few unusual chromosomes though they aren’t the only reason for leukemia.

Causes of Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML)

This kind of Leukemia is most common in people aged 60 or more. Some of the most common causes of AML are:

• Radiation – Exposure to very high radiation levels, like those that have been through chemotherapy or radiation therapy, has higher risks of developing certain types of leukemia.
• Exposure to chemicals – People exposed to chemicals for years together have a higher risk of being diagnosed with AML.
• Smoking – Smoking highly increases the risk of an AML, and the researchers have believed that it might be because of benzene in cigarettes.
• Chemotherapy and Radiation Therapy – People who have been through Radiation therapy or Chemotherapy have higher chances of being at the risk of getting diagnosed with AML. This is also known as secondary leukemia or treatment-related AML.
• Blood Disorders – People with certain types of blood disorders like myelodysplasia or myeloproliferative have a higher risk of developing AML.
• Genetic Disorders – People with certain genetic disorders have a higher chance of developing leukemia. Down Syndrome and Fanconi’s Amnesia included.
• Family History – AML or any other type of blood cancer affects other family members.

Causes of Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL)

Some of the factors that increase the risk of developing CLL are:

• Age – The risk of developing CLL increases with age. Most people above the age of 60 are diagnosed with CLL. It is infrequent with people under the age of 40.
• Sex – Men have a higher probability of getting CLL than women.
• Family History – It has been found that there is an increased risk of developing CLL if a close family member has it. However, most people with CLL have shown no family history of it.
• Ethnicity – People of European origin are more likely to have developed CLL.

Causes of Chronic Myeloid Leukemia (CML)

Unlike the other types of cancers, CML does not run in families; it is not infectious, cannot be passed on to others, it is not linked to diet, smoking, or exposure to chemicals. However, some factors add to the risk of developing CML.

• Age – CML can happen to anyone at any age. But it is most common in older people.
• Gender – CML is more common in men than women.
• Radiation Exposure – Being exposed to high radiation levels can increase the risk of developing CML.

How Does Leukemia Develop

Leukemia starts in the bone marrow, which is the soft tissue inside your bones where blood cells are made. Blood cells go through several stages before becoming fully mature. The mature, healthy blood cells are:

• Red blood cells: These carry oxygen and other essential materials to your body’s organs and tissues.
• White blood cells: These fight infections.
• Platelets: These help your blood clot.

Blood cells begin as hematopoietic stem cells (hemo = blood, poiesis = making). These stem cells develop into two types of cells: myeloid cells and lymphoid cells. If blood cells develop normally, the mature forms of these cells are:

• Myeloid cells turn into red blood cells, platelets, and some types of white blood cells (basophils, eosinophils, and neutrophils).
• Lymphoid cells turn into certain white blood cells (lymphocytes and natural killer cells).

In leukemia, one of the blood cells begins to grow uncontrollably. The leukemia cells, which are abnormal, begin to occupy the bone marrow, crowding out the healthy cells that should turn into red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets.

Treatment for different types of Leukemia

There is no one way to treat leukemia. It depends on several factors, such as the type of leukemia one has, age, and overall health. But there are some common treatments to fight leukemia, are:

• Chemotherapy – This is the most commonly used treatment for leukemia. This drug treatment kills the leukemia cells. A prescription of a single or a combination of drugs depending on the type of leukemia.
• Targeted Therapy – Radiation therapy is moving a giant machine around your body as you lie still, directing the radiation to a specific point in your body. These high-energy beams kill the collection of leukemia cells that are present at one point in the body else receive radiation all through your body.
• Bone marrow transplant – A bone marrow transplant, also known as a stem cell transplant, replaces unhealthy bone marrow with a set of new leukemia-free healthy stem cells.
• Immunotherapy – Immunotherapy uses the body’s immune system to fight cancer. However, the body’s disease-fighting immune system might not attack cancer because of the proteins produced by the cancer cells that help them hide from the immune system cells.
• Clinical Trials – Clinical trials are testing new cancer treatments and trying to improve the existing cancer treatments.

Frequently Asked Questions