Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia, Symptoms and Treatment
All blood cells are formed from myeloid and lymphoid cells in bone marrow. Different types of white cells are produced from lymphoid source.В Leukemia originating from problem in lymphoid cells is known as Lymphocytic leukemia. Lymphocytic leukemia is also called Lymphoblastic leukemia. Cells in abnormal or immature condition are also called having “BLAST” state.В This is the reason why Lymphocytic Leukemia is also termed as Lymphoblastic leukemia.
Leukemia is a fatal a disease. The question is,В at what stage it becomes fatal ? If the leukemia is caused by cells which at very initial production state(less mature), the disease becomes fatal within weeks if left untreated. “ACUTE” refers to the fact that leukemia becomes deadly dangerous in a very short period of time. As it becomes fatal very quickly, it should be treated immediately. Acute lymphocytic leukemia is generally seen in childhood or in old age. Mostly children become the victim of Acute lymphocytic leukemia. Acute Lymphocytic leukemia is abbreviated as “ALL”.
Symptoms of acute lymphocytic leukemia are similar to other leukemia types. These symptoms include anemia (Paleness), fatigue, bruising due to lack of platelets, join pain (due to presence of abnormal cells in bone surface or cavity), weight loss, night sweats, swelling in lymph nodes and limbs.
Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia Treatment
The objective of treatment is to reduce the number of abnormal cells. The goal of all treatments is to minimize the ratio of blast cells to less than 5 % at bone marrow. As abnormal cells spread all over the body, there is no surgical solution to treat leukemia. Available option include followings,
Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy is commonly used in treatment of cancer. It is treatment of diseases using chemicals. Chemotherapy kills abnormal white cells that are root cause of leukemia. Chemotherapy of leukemia consists of three phases. Treatment may take up to 2-3 years.
Radiation Therapy Treatment
In this treatment, high energy radiations are used to kill the tumor cells. This treatment is applied to body parts which are under high attach. It is also used in bone marrow transplant process. Radiation therapy damages the DNA of cells and as result of this, cells die. This may also damage normal body cells, so the treatment should be applied very carefully. Visit following link to read more about Radiation Therapy,
Cancer Treatment with Radiation Therapy
Bone Marrow Transplant
Aggressive chemotherapy may result in damage to bone marrow. As of result of this damage, bone marrow may fail to further produce normal cells.В In this case bone marrow transplant is required. Visit following link to read about bone marrow transplant,
Steroids and other such medicines are also used in acute lymphocytic treatment. Often a mixed treatment approach is used to get rid of Leukemia.
November 7, 2010
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“The goal of all treatments is to minimize the ratio of blast cells to less than 5 % at bone marrow. As abnormal cells spread all over the body, there is no surgical solution to treat leukemia.”
How much is realistic?
This article in fact is a short and informative summary of the resources available at different places. You can visit following link to read more on what you asked.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acute_lymphoblastic_leukemia#Treatment
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