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Home > Conditions & Concerns > Specialties  > Cancer > Leukemia Cancer > Introduction

Introduction

Leukemia comes from a Greek word which means “white blood”; it is often referred to as cancer of the blood.

All blood cells grow old and die when they are no longer needed. The life-span of blood cells varies widely - red blood cells live for about 4 months after they leave the marrow, Granulocytes (Neutrophils) live for a few hours and platelets survive for a few days.

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To maintain the proper numbers of each type of blood cell it is important that cells die off and are cleared from the blood at the end of their useful lifespan. 

In leukemia, normal control mechanisms break down and the marrow starts to produce large numbers of abnormal cells. This disrupts the normal production of blood cells leading to anemia and low platelet counts. The abnormal cells cannot fight infections like normal white blood cells. 

Signs and Symptoms 

The symptoms which are seen most often in leukemia and related diseases are:

1. Excessive tiredness

2. Breathlessness

3. Paleness

4. Pain in bones and joints

5. Bleeding

6. Excessive bruising

7. Persistent infections

8. Abdominal discomfort

9. Enlarged lymph glands

10. Persistent fevers

11. Night sweats

12. Pathological fractures 

Patients may show any combination of symptoms. Some may be more obvious than others. Initial symptoms may appear to be nothing worse than a bout of flu. Anyone who develops persistent symptoms should see their doctor promptly. 

Paleness, tiredness, weakness and breathlessness are caused by anemia (too few red cells) which reduces the ability of the blood to carry oxygen. 

Bone pain may be caused by abnormal blood cell production in the marrow or by damage to the bone in Myeloma. The bone damage in Myeloma may lead to pathological fractures (broken bones resulting from very slight injuries). 

Bruising and/or bleeding problems result from a low platelet count. Infections are a problem despite the apparently high numbers of white cells because there are few normal white cells. 

Abdominal discomfort may be a problem in those conditions where there is swelling of the spleen, the liver or both.

Enlarged lymph nodes are a particular feature of lymphoma but they may also be present in Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia. Persistent fevers may occur even in the absence of infection. This is probably a result of a general speeding up of body metabolism because of the high rate of tumor cell production. This may also explain the night sweats which are typically a feature of lymphoma and some forms of leukemia.