Leukemia

Cancer related to blood cells is called as Leukemia. Under Leukemia condition, bone marrow produces abnormal cancerous blood cells that crowd out the normal and healthy blood cells. Leukemia is of different types based which blood cell type has become cancerous. White blood cells are more to prone to become cancerous than RBCs and platelets. Leukemia can be acute or chronic and Lymphocytic or Myelogenous. It occurs most commonly in adults above 55 years and children younger than 15 years. The treatment methods used depend on the blood cell affected and whether the leukemia is acute or chronic or Lymphocytic or Myelogenous. Chemotherapy is frequently used to treat leukemia.

An epidemiological study of the total population of patients with leukaemia in Poland during the period 1963-90 was performed. Of the 38,200 patients, 50% had acute leukaemia, 25% had chronic lymphatic leukaemia, 15% had chronic myeloid leukaemia, and 10% of the patients had undefined lymphatic and myeloid leukaemia. Over the 28-year period, the incidence of leukaemia increased threefold in the age group 70-80+ years, and the increase in the age group 50-69 years was suspected. In the final 11 years of the study acute leukaemia increased in total age groups, mainly among those aged 70-80+ years, whereas the incidence of chronic myeloid leukaemia remained unchanged. The incidence of chronic lymphatic leukaemia increased only in the age group 70-80+ years.