The 10th most frequent malignancy to be identified in the country is leukemia. It is a broad term for cancers affecting various blood-forming tissues like bone marrow and the lymphatic system. The malignancy is usually associated with the white blood cells. Different types of leukemia exist, and they are classified mostly by how rapidly or slowly they grow and whether they start in lymphoid or myeloid cells. Read on to learn more about this blood condition.

Types of leukemia
The most prevalent forms of leukemia are:

• Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia (ALL)
  The most prevalent form of leukemia in children, teenagers, and young adults is acute lymphocytic leukemia.

• Acute Myelogenous Leukemia (AML)
  The type of leukemia (AML) is mostly seen in adults. In some cases, this blood disorder can affect youngsters too.

• Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL)
  CLL is more prevalent in those over 65. With CLL, symptoms may take years to develop, leaving the condition difficult to diagnose in the initial stages.

• Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia (CML)
  Adults of any age can develop chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML), but older adults are more likely to get it (it is most frequent in people over 65). Children rarely experience this condition. CML symptoms may take several years to become apparent.

Causes
Although the specific etiology of leukemia is unknown, experts think that genetic or environmental variables, such as toxins or pollutants, may cause DNA alterations in some blood cells, resulting in the condition. The following are a few risk factors for leukemias that typically affect adults:

• Increased age
• Long-term contact with radiation or other cancer-causing substances like benzene
• An inheritance of leukemia
• Several blood conditions, including polycythemia vera
• Several congenital disorders, including Fanconi anemia and Down syndrome

Signs & symptoms
In leukemia, healthy blood cells are displaced by abnormal ones, leading to signs like:

• Feeling drained, lightheaded, queasy, or cold
• Breathing difficulty
• Pale skin
• Headaches
• Infection recurrence or trouble recovering from infections
• Little red or purple blotches on the skin or bruises
• Hemorrhages, such as strong menstrual bleeding, bleeding gums, or frequent or severe nosebleeds
• Reduced BMI levels
• Fever
• Sweats at night
• Reduced appetite
• A sense of fullness or abdominal bloating brought on by an enlarged liver or spleen
• An increase in lymph nodes size
• Joint or bone aches

Treatment options
Combinations of the following treatment options are frequently employed:

• Chemotherapy
  The most popular method of treating leukemia entails using chemicals to eradicate leukemia cells or prevent their regrowth. During this therapy, the patient might receive the prescription orally, intravenously, or subcutaneously.

• Immunotherapy
  This treatment aims to strengthen the patient’s immune system. The defense mechanism can better recognize cancer cells and make more immune cells to combat them with immunotherapy.

• Stem Cell Transplant
  The leukemia cells that produce blood are replaced in the bone marrow by a stem cell transplant. The doctor may take new stem cells from the patient’s body or a donor to treat the individual. To eliminate the cancer cells in the bone marrow, the person will first undergo rigorous chemotherapy treatments. The newly harvested stem cells will subsequently be transferred into a bodily vein. They will develop into brand-new, wholesome blood cells.

• Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy
  This cutting-edge treatment uses the body’s immune cells to fight infections before reintroducing them to attack leukemia cells.