Leukemia

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Symptoms
● Fever or chills

● Weakness

● Frequent or severe infections

● Losing weight

● Swollen lymph nodes

● Easy bleeding or bruising

● Recurrent nose bleeding

● Tiny red spots in your skin

● Excessive sweating,especially at

night

● Bone pain or tenderness source

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History
 They diagnosed leukemia for the first time(officially) in

1845. It had already been observed in patients in Germany

and was called “weisses blut” or white blood. This was

because of the abnormal white blood cell counts.

There are about 54,270 new cases of leukemia in the US each

year.
Experts say that different leukemias have

different causes. The following are either

known causes, or strongly suspected causes:

● Artificial ionizing radiation

● Viruses - HTLV-1 (human T-lymphotropic virus) and HIV

(human immunodeficiency virus)

● Benzene and some petrochemicals

● Alkylating chemotherapy agents used in previous cancers

● Maternal fetal transmission (rare)

● Hair dyes

● Genetic predisposition - some studies researching family

history and looking at twins have indicated that some people

 have a higher risk of developing leukemia because of a single

gene or multiple genes.

● Down syndrome - people with Down syndrome have a

significantly higher risk of developing leukemia, compared to

people who do not have Down syndrome. Experts say that

because of this, people with certain chromosomal

abnormalities may have a higher risk.

● Electromagnetic energy - studies indicate there is not enough

evidence to show that ELF magnetic (not electric) fields that

exist currently might cause leukemia. The IARC

(International Agency for Research on Cancer) says that

studies which indicate there is a risk tend to be biased and

unreliable
Cause

Leukemia is when the DNA of young blood cells, mainly

white cells, becomes damaged in some way. This

abnormality causes the blood cells to grow and divide

chaotically. Normal blood cells die after a while and are

replaced by new cells, which are produced in the bone

marrow. The abnormal blood cells do not die so easily, and

accumulate, occupying more and more space. As more and

more space is taken up by these faulty blood cells there is

less and less space for the normal cells - and the sufferer

becomes sick. To put it simply, the bad cells crowd out the

good cells in the blood.

What happens to the

patient’s body?
Your bone marrow is where stem cells grow. These stem

cells become white blood cells, red blood cells, and

platelets.

In most cases of leukemia, there are too many abnormal

white blood cells. These leukemia cells crowd out the

normal blood cells in your bone marrow and build up in

your lymph nodes, liver, and spleen.

When the leukemia cells crowd out your normal cells, your

blood can't do its job. You may bleed or bruise easily, have

more infections, and feel very tired.

Treatment includes:

1. Induction therapy

2. Chemotherapy

3. Corticosteroids

4. Stem cell transplants

% of people in the

World with

Cancer
Approximately 39.0 percent of men and women
 Sources
● Symptoms :

http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-

conditions/leukemia/basics/symptoms/con-

20024914

● Cause

https://www.cancer.gov/types/leukemia

● History:
McGlauflin, Shannon. "History of Leukemia." History of Leukemia. Shannon McGlauflin, Jolene
Munger, and Rebecca Nelson, 2005. Web. 27 Feb. 2017.
<http://rebeccanelson.com/leukemia/history.html>.