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HealthInfo Canterbury

Leukaemia

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Leukaemia is the name for some blood-related types of cancer that develop in the bone marrow.

Normally, young blood cells (blast cells) develop healthily in your bone marrow. When they are mature they become either red cells, white cells, or platelets, and travel into the bloodstream.

Leukaemia happens when, instead of developing normally, these cells grow and multiply in an uncontrolled way. They stop blood cells working properly in the bloodstream.

Types of leukaemia

Leukaemia graphic Leukaemia can be either acute or chronic.

Leukaemia can also be either myeloid or lymphoid.

Causes of leukaemia

We don't completely understand what causes leukaemia. Some people have a higher chance of getting leukaemia, but that doesn't mean you will definitely get it. If you are worried, talk to your doctor.

Symptoms of leukaemia

If you have leukaemia, you might have some of these symptoms because your blood doesn't have enough blood cells to work well. For example:

These are also symptoms of many other diseases. In some types of leukaemia, there is no sign that you have it until it reaches an advanced stage.

Diagnosing leukaemia

Leukaemia is diagnosed using either a blood test or a bone marrow test (bone marrow biopsy).

In a blood test, the number of white blood cells, red blood cells and platelets are counted. The blood count is considered abnormal if there is:

A wide variety of tests are used to check your bone marrow, including microscopic analysis and bone marrow culture studies.

Treating leukaemia

Treatment depends on the individual patient and the type of leukaemia. It can include chemotherapy, radiation treatment and stem cell or bone marrow transplant.

The main aim of treatment is to get rid of the abnormal malignant cells, allowing the normal cells to grow in the bone marrow again.

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