What is leukemia in simple words?
Leukemia is cancer of the white blood cells. White blood cells (also called leukocytes or WBCs) fight infections and other diseases. In leukemia, the bone marrow (spongy material inside the bones) makes many white blood cells that aren’t normal. These abnormal WBCs crowd the bone marrow and get into the bloodstream.
Why isn’t leukemia staged?
Leukemia is a blood cancer and doesn’t cause tumors to form. Instead, leukemia staging is based on the amount of cancerous white blood cells that are circulating in the body.
What is the rarest leukemia?
Chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) This type of leukemia is rare. Only 10 percent of leukemias are CML. Adults are more likely than children to get CML. CML occurs when a genetic change turns the myeloid cells into immature cancer cells.
Is acute myeloid leukemia a liquid tumor?
Despite Dock and Warthin’s recognition of the link between chloroma and acute leukemia in 1902,5 acute myeloid leukemia (AML) continues to be referred to as a “liquid tumor,” implying dissemination of bone marrow (BM)-derived cells in the blood.
How does someone get leukemia?
How does leukemia form? Some scientists believe that leukemia results from an as-of-yet undetermined combination of genetic and environmental factors that can lead to mutations in the cells that make up the bone marrow. These mutations, known as leukemic changes, cause the cells to grow and divide very rapidly.
What is leukemia bone pain like?
Leukemia bone pain is often felt in the legs, especially in childhood leukemia. Pain occurs when abnormal white blood cells accumulate and expand the bone marrow. It’s either sharp or dull pain, depending on the location. Leukemia bone pain symptoms are typically constant and get worse when you move around.
Is B cell leukemia curable?
Most people with B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia go into remission. However, many people may relapse and need further treatment. B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia is very likely to be cured if you have been in remission for 5 years or more.