How is acute leukemia treated?

Written by Li Fang Fang
Hematology
Updated on April 15, 2025
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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.

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Written by Li Fang Fang
Hematology
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How is leukemia treated?

Leukemia treatment currently mainly consists of three aspects: supportive care, chemotherapy, and transplantation. Supportive care refers to actively preventing and treating infections, as well as transfusing red blood cells and platelets in leukemia patients, who often suffer from repeated infections, anemia, and bleeding. Chemotherapy can be divided into oral chemotherapy and intravenous chemotherapy, depending on the specific type of leukemia. Transplantation can be divided into autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation and allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Autologous transplantation costs less and has fewer side effects but has a higher relapse rate. Allogeneic transplantation is more costly, has more severe side effects, but a lower relapse rate. Whether to undergo autologous or allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation depends on the specific type of disease and the patient's individual circumstances.

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Written by Yan Xin Liang
Pediatrics
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Early symptoms of childhood leukemia

Generally speaking, leukemia can manifest symptoms related to a decrease in all three blood cell lines. Changes in these three lines typically include an increase or decrease in white blood cells, a decrease in red blood cells leading to symptoms of anemia, and a reduction in platelets, resulting in symptoms of bleeding. Children with leukemia often experience recurrent fevers and are prone to infections, as well as bleeding gums. There may also be enlargement of the liver, spleen, and lymph nodes, along with pallor of the face and lips, which appear pale and bloodless.

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Written by Li Fang Fang
Hematology
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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.)

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Hematology
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Symptoms of Acute Leukemia

The common symptoms of acute leukemia include four main categories: infection, anemia, bleeding, and tumor infiltration. Symptoms of infection manifest as fever, cough, expectoration, chest pain, abdominal pain, diarrhea, frequent urination, urgent urination, painful urination, skin infections, and perianal infections. Anemia is characterized by dizziness, fatigue, poor appetite, and decreased endurance. Symptoms of reduced platelets mainly involve bleeding, which can manifest as bleeding of the skin and mucous membranes, organ bleeding, and even cerebral hemorrhage. Tumor infiltration can manifest as gingival hyperplasia and skin rashes among other swellings.

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Symptoms of Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia

Most cases of chronic granulocytic leukemia are due to abnormal enlargement of the spleen, leading to abdominal distension and poor appetite. A small portion of chronic granulocytic leukemia cases show no obvious symptoms and are only discovered through routine physical examinations, finding an abnormal increase in white blood cells, leading to diagnosis and treatment in the hematology department. Common clinical symptoms of chronic granulocytic leukemia include an enlarged spleen. Additionally, some patients may also experience fatigue due to anemia, and a very few patients seek medical advice due to bleeding caused by a decrease in platelets.