Leukemia

A malignant production of an excess of abnormal white blood cells that damages the bone marrow, reducing normal white blood cells.  It can be life threatening.  There are four main types of leukemia:  acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL),which is the most common type fund in children and adults above age 65. acute myelogenous leukemia (AML), which almost always affects adults and is rarely seen in children,  chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CCL), which usually affects adults over age 55 and is rarely seen in children, and chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) , which usually affects adults and is rarely seen in children.  Hairy cell leukemia and acute promyelocytic leukemia are two forms that are extremely rare in both children and adults. Leukemias are classified according to the particular type of cancerous cell and how quickly the cancer progresses.  Symptoms of leukemia are general and can sometimes be confused with other disorders or even ignored. Feelings of chronic fatigue, weakness, and shortness of breath from anemia are some of the initial symptoms.  Observation of enlarged lymph nodes, easy bruising and bleeding, pain in joints and bones, recurrent infections, abdominal pain due to an enlarged spleen or liver, and unexplained fever are possible signs of leukemia.  Current treatments have the potential to cure leukemia.  They include drug therapy (chemotherapeutic or immunological agents) combined with radiation, bone marrow transplant, or stem cell transplant.