Blood Cancer (Leukemia)

Blood cancer (Leukemia)

How ill If There's Disease in the Human Body. How ill, if we experience disease Blood Cancer (Leukemia). Activity we would be distracted and uncomfortable. Leukemia (blood cancer) is a type of cancer that attacks white blood cells produced by bone marrow (bone marrow). Bone marrow or bone marrow in the human body produces three types of blood cells including white blood cells (functioning as an immune system against infection), red blood cells (carry oxygen into the body to function) and platelets (small part of blood cells that help blood clotting process ).

Leukemia generally appear in person since the days of childhood, bone marrow without obvious cause has been known to produce white blood cells do not develop normal or abnormal. Normally, white blood cells to reproduce again when the body needs or is there a place for the blood cells themselves. The human body will give signs / signals on a regular basis when will the blood cell-reproduction is expected to be back.

In the case of leukemia (blood cancer), white blood cells do not respond to the sign / signal is given. Finally, uncontrolled excessive production (abnormal) will exit from the bone marrow and can be found in the peripheral blood or peripheral blood. The number of abnormal white blood cells that are in excess can disrupt the normal function of other cells, People with these conditions (Leukemia) will show some symptoms such as susceptible to infectious diseases, anemia and bleeding.

Acute Leukemia and Chronic Disease

Acute leukemia is characterized by a very rapid course of the disease, lethal, and worse. If this is not promptly treated, it can cause death within weeks to days. While the course of the disease have chronic leukemia that is not so fast that it has a longer life expectancy, up to more than 1 year.

Leukemia is classified according to cell type

When the examination is known that lymphocytes or leukemia affects lymphoid cells, it is called lymphocytic leukemia. While leukemia affecting myeloid cells such as neutrophils, basophils, and eosinophils, is called myelogenous leukemia.

From this classification, then Leukemia is divided into four types as:

1. Acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL). Is the most common type of leukemia in children. The disease is also present in adults who primarily have been aged 65 years or more.
2. Acute myelogenous leukemia (AML). It is more common in adults than children. This type was formerly called nonlimfositik acute leukemia.
3. Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (LLK). This often affects adults over the age of 55 years. Sometimes it also affects young adults, and almost no children.
4. Chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) often occurs in adults. Can also occur in children, but very little.

Causes of Leukemia

Until now the cause of leukemia is not known with certainty, but there are several factors thought to affect the frequency of occurrence of leukemia.

1. Of radiation. This is supported by several reports of some research which handles cases of leukemia that is more frequent radiological Employees suffering from leukemia, patients with radiotherapy more often suffer from leukemia, Leukemia incidence was found in atomic bomb survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan.
2. Leukemogenik. Several chemicals have been identified are reported to affect the frequency of leukemia, such as environmental toxins such as benzene, industrial chemicals such as insecticides, drugs used for chemotherapy.
3. Hereditary. People with Down Syndrome have the incidence of acute leukemia 20 times greater than normal people.
4. The virus. Some types of viruses can cause leukemia, such as retroviruses, feline leukemia virus, HTLV-1 in adults.

Signs and Symptoms of Leukemia

Leukemia Symptoms are generally caused differ among patients, however, can generally be described as follows:

1. Anemia. Patients would appear tired, pale and breathing fast (below normal red blood cells causing less oxygen in the body, resulting in the patient breathes faster to compensate for the fulfillment of oxygen deficiency in the body).
2. Hemorrhage. When the platelets (blood clotting cells) are not reproduced with reasonable because it is dominated by white blood cells, then the patient will experience bleeding in the skin tissue (number of red wiggler width / small skin tissue).
3. Esophageal Infections. White blood cells act as a protective immunity, especially against infectious diseases. In Patients with leukemia, white blood cells that form is not normal (abnormal) so it does not function properly. As a result the body of the patient vulnerable to infection virus / bacteria, even by itself would reveal complaints of fever, white discharge from the nose (runny) and cough.
4. Bone pain and joints. This is caused as a result of bone marrow (bone marrow) by pressing solid white blood cells.
5. Stomach Pain. Abdominal pain is also one indication of the symptoms of leukemia, in which the leukemia cells may collect in the kidneys, liver and bile that causes enlargement of these organs and timbulah pain. Abdominal pain can affect appetite loss of leukemia patients.
6. Swollen glands lympa. Patients likely to have swollen glands lympa, whether it is under the arms, neck, chest and more. Gland lympa duty filter the blood, leukemia cells may collect here and cause swelling.
7. Difficulty breathing (dyspnea). The patient may show symptoms of difficulty breathing and chest pain, if this happens then it should immediately get medical help.

Routine blood tests (eg, complete blood counts) could provide evidence that a person suffering from leukemia. The total number of white blood cells can be decreased, normal or increased, but the number of red blood cells and platelets are almost always reduced. White blood cells are immature (blast cells) were seen in the blood samples examined under a microscope. Bone marrow biopsy is almost always done to confirm the diagnosis and determine the type of leukemia.


How to Treat Leukemia