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Leukemia
What department should you go to for leukemia?
Leukemia is a type of malignant blood cancer and should be treated by a hematologist. Common clinical manifestations of leukemia include infections, anemia, and bleeding. Infections occur because leukemia patients have weak immune systems, potentially leading to severe infections. These infections may affect the lungs, urinary system, or intestines. Anemia can cause leukemia patients to appear pale, feel weak, have poor appetite, and have decreased tolerance for activity. Bleeding may manifest as bleeding gums, nasal bleeding, or bleeding from skin and mucous membranes. When such symptoms appear, a routine blood test should be conducted. If the test indicates a possibility of leukemia, further correction by a hematologist is necessary.
Can leukemia cause toothache?
Leukemia, particularly acute leukemia, is characterized by leukemic cells losing their ability to differentiate and mature, remaining at various stages of cell development. This results in a significant reduction in mature, functional white blood cells. Consequently, patients with acute leukemia have extremely low immune function. Therefore, more than half of the patients initially present with fever as the primary symptom. Fever indicates infection, which can spread to multiple parts of the body, with oral inflammation, gingivitis, and pharyngitis being the most common. Thus, patients with acute leukemia who also have gingivitis may experience toothache.
Is a body temperature of 37.3 and feeling tired indicative of leukemia?
More than half of patients with acute leukemia present with fever as an early symptom, which can be low-grade or as high as 39~40°C or even higher. At the same time, some patients may experience fatigue due to anemia, but the presence of low-grade fever and fatigue does not necessarily indicate leukemia. If leukemia is suspected, further tests such as a complete blood count and peripheral blood smear examination are necessary. If the patient has abnormal white blood cells, combined with anemia and a reduction in platelets, and a large number of blast or early immature granulocytes are seen on the peripheral blood smear, leukemia should be highly suspected, and a further bone marrow biopsy examination is needed for a clear diagnosis. If the complete blood count and peripheral blood smear show no significant abnormalities, leukemia can generally be ruled out.
Is acute leukemia contagious?
Acute leukemia is not a contagious disease, so it is not transmissible. Acute leukemia is a malignant tumor disease of the hematopoietic system. The causes of this disease are still not very clear, however, some known inducers include exposure to radiation, contact with chemotherapy drugs, and contact with benzene-containing chemicals. The genetic factors of acute leukemia are also not significant, so children usually do not have a genetic predisposition if their parents suffer from acute leukemia.
The difference between chronic granulocytic leukemia and leukemia
Chronic granulocytic leukemia is no different from leukemia; it's simply a type of leukemia. Leukemia is divided into acute leukemia and chronic leukemia, with chronic leukemia further divided into chronic granulocytic leukemia and chronic lymphocytic leukemia. Currently, chronic granulocytic leukemia can be clinically cured by oral tyrosine kinase inhibitors, unlike other acute leukemias that require hospitalization for intravenous chemotherapy. Patients with chronic granulocytic leukemia need to regularly return to outpatient clinics for follow-ups and medication guidance after taking oral medications. Overall, the prognosis for chronic granulocytic leukemia is relatively good, with a comparatively longer survival period. (Medication should be used under the guidance of a doctor.)
Can leukemia be cured?
Some types of leukemia can be cured. Leukemia is divided into acute leukemia and chronic leukemia. Among acute leukemias, acute promyelocytic leukemia has a better prognosis, and most patients can achieve a cure through chemotherapy. In addition to acute promyelocytic leukemia, the prognosis of MRB and MCEO types of acute leukemia is also relatively good. Patients with low-risk can potentially be cured through chemotherapy. In chronic leukemia, chronic myeloid leukemia currently has oral targeted medications available, such as imatinib, and most patients with this category of disease can also achieve clinical cure through oral chemotherapy medications. (Specific medications should be taken under the guidance of a physician.)
How is acute leukemia treated?
The treatment for acute leukemia is chemotherapy. Chemotherapy can be administered orally or intravenously, and the choice between oral or intravenous chemotherapy depends on the type of acute leukemia. For patients with acute leukemia, if chemotherapy alone can effectively control the disease or achieve a cure, then there is no need for allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. However, if chemotherapy alone cannot control the disease, and the patient is considered at high risk and of suitable age, then allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation should be considered.
How to test for leukemia?
Patients with leukemia should first undergo a routine blood test. Some leukemia patients' routine blood tests may indicate leukemia, such as when white blood cell counts are abnormally high, exceeding 50*10^9/L, and can even reach more than 100*10^9/L, which highly suggests leukemia. At this point, bone marrow biopsy, bone marrow immunotyping, and chromosome tests are needed to further clarify the type of leukemia. In addition, risk stratification in leukemia patients is also necessary through genetic mutations and chromosome analysis.
Is chronic myeloid leukemia scary?
Chronic myeloid leukemia, though a type of leukemia, is not terrifying because there are targeted drugs available for it, namely tyrosine kinase inhibitors. These inhibitors have been developed into first, second, and third-generation products. Most cases of chronic granulocytic leukemia can achieve clinical remission after oral administration of tyrosine kinase inhibitors. Some patients might experience a blast crisis, acceleration phase, or relapse during treatment, but they can switch to higher-grade tyrosine kinase inhibitors or undergo allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Thus, chronic myeloid leukemia is no longer considered a frightening disease. (Please use medication under the guidance of a doctor.)
The difference between chronic granulocytic leukemia and leukemia
Chronic granulocytic leukemia is a type of leukemia, which itself is a group of malignant clonal disorders of hematopoietic stem cells. In leukemia, the leukemic cells exhibit enhanced self-renewal, uncontrolled proliferation, and obstructed apoptosis, causing a halt at various stages of cell development. Leukemia is divided into acute leukemia and chronic leukemia. Acute leukemia includes acute lymphoblastic leukemia and acute myeloid leukemia, while chronic leukemia includes chronic lymphocytic leukemia and chronic granulocytic leukemia. The primary difference between acute and chronic leukemia is that the leukemic cells in acute leukemia mainly stall at the primitive and immature stages, whereas in chronic leukemia, the cells primarily remain at the mid-immature and late-immature stages.