Acute Myeloid Leukemia

In America alone, around 13,000 people are said to have been diagnosed with this type of cancer. Acute myeloid leukemia, is a cancer of the white blood cells, and the chances of getting this type of cancer increases as the age of the person increases. But that does not mean that children and middle aged people or young people cannot get it, as even they are prone to this type of cancer.

Causes

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is also called 'acute myelocytic leukemia or acute granulocytic leukemia. This is a that spreads quickly in the blood and the bone marrow. In this type of cancer, the bone marrow creates some cells which have not yet developed and they are called blasts. These blasts later develop into white blood cells which protects our body from any kind of disease. If a person has AML, then these blasts do not develop into WBC and thus, they are unable to fight any kind of disease. The bone marrow of the body also produces an abnormal amount of red blood cells and even platelets. The growth of leukemia cells or abnormal cells, quickly outgrows that of red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets in our body. This cancer, through the blood, can sometimes spread to the lymph nodes, liver, spleen or central nervous system or even to the testicles is case of males. A person usually gets this cancer around the age of 65 years. A person having AML below the age of 40 years, is a rare case. Moreover, this cancer is more common in men than in women.

Symptoms

There are various symptoms and signs which indicates whether a person has got the symptoms or not. The various symptoms are:

• Lack of energy
• Mild temperature due to low WBC count
• Bones or knees, hips or shoulder start aching
• Bruises start appearing without any reason
• Cuts heal slowly. This is because of low number of platelets count in the body. Platelets are the ones that control bleeding
• Since the red blood cells carry less amount of oxygen, anemia is also another sign of AML
• Experiencing shortness of breathe during any physical activity
• The skin turns pale and small red spots start developing under the skin
• The gums also start swelling and they start bleeding
• The person also starts losing weight at a drastic rate
• Nose starts bleeding
• Women may experience irregular menstrual cycles

Treatment

As we have already seen, this health condition spreads at a very fast rate, hence, when the first signs of this cancer start showing, the doctors start with treatment immediately. But first, before starting with the treatment have to keep in mind, the risks that the patient might be exposed to, the past medical history of the patient and the various side effects that the patient might face during or after the treatment. The various treatment options are:

• Chemotherapy is one such treatment. This kills the cancerous cells that are causing leukemia. But at the same time, this treatment may also destroy other good cells of the body, thus, making the person more prone to various other diseases
• There are various antibiotics that the patient can take in order to kill any infection that may occur
• Bone marrow transplant is also carried out in order to get rid of infected cells
• Blood transfusion is done because the blood now carries less of oxygen, which causes anemia
• Platelets usually control the bleeding in our body. Since the number of platelets have been outnumbered by the leukemia cells, platelet transfusion is carried out in order to make up for the deficit
• There are some medicines which can be used such as the all-trans retinoic acid or ATRA. They transform abnormal cells into normal WBC.

Life Expectancy

After diagnosis, if an AML patient hasn't had a relapse for the next 5 years, then it's good news for them as it means that they have been cured. Also, patients who have this type of cancer when they are below 60 years, their chances of survival are more than those that are above 60. If the person receives proper treatments, then they can survive. But if the patient does not receive any treatment, then the life expectancy is 3 or 4 months. So it's better that as soon as the person starts showing symptoms, treatment should be initiated.

Now that you know the various causes, symptoms and treatment options, you will be able to recognize this cancer if a person has it and you can immediately start off with the treatment. Do not worry, as with proper treatment, you can get rid of this cancer.