Laukemia Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Laukemia - Term Paper Example This factor does not help the normal blood cells to carry out their work. Leukemia begins in the bone marrow and later spreads throughout the body. Mostly, a bone marrow test is carried out to identify leukemia. Both adults and children can develop this disease. â€Å"Although leukemia often is thought to be a childhood disease, in fact, the disease strikes 10 times as many adults as children.† (Leukemia Facts & Figures, n.d.) Though exact reason for a person to develop leukemia is not known, many significant clinical trials have been done on the development of Leukemia. Every year, around 250,000 people are being identified to have developed leukemia and over 200,000 of them die (Vogt, 2010). The treatment methods for this disease are surgery, radiation, chemotherapy, hormone therapy. Though there are many tests to diagnose leukemia, the diagnosis itself may be delayed due to delayed symptoms or symptoms which resemble other conditions. The diagnosis of leukemia may vary acco rding to the kind of leukemia that has developed in a person. Statistics say that â€Å"in the United States about 2,000 children and 27,000 adults are diagnosed each year with leukemia† (Leukemia Information, 2011). Survival rates have increased considerably in the years before due to improvements in treatment. Symptoms of this disease may not be noticeable many times, particularly in chronic leukemia, but people may get symptoms like tiredness, inexplicable weight loss, and fever at times. Other symptoms of leukemia like headaches, joint pain, and pain in the belly due to enlarged spleen may also be noticed. Types of Leukemia Leukemia has been divided into various groups. Leukemia is a term covering four forms of diseases of the blood and bone marrow. These include â€Å"acute lymphocytic leukemia and acute myelogenous leukemia†. These two types of leukemia progress rapidly while the other two types, â€Å"the chronic lymphocytic leukemia and chronic myelogenous leu kemia, progress slowly† (Leukemia, n.d.). Acute leukemia exemplifies swift increase of immature blood cells. Instant and necessary treatment is required in acute leukemia due to this fast development and growth of the abnormal cells. The acute form of leukemia is most common in children. Chronic leukemia is found in those that progress relatively slow when compared to acute forms. The chronic leukemia cells are abnormal white blood cells that take many months or years to progress. The cells are produced much more in number than normal cells. Chronic leukemia is monitored for a certain amount of time before initializing treatment so as to make sure the maximum usefulness of therapy. This form of leukemia is more often found in elderly people but occurs in any age. Leukemia is further divided into various types (What is Leukemia? What causes Leukemia, 2009): 1. Acute lymphocytic leukemia: This form of leukemia is more common in young children. This disease is also found in older people who are 65 years and above. The standard treatment for this type would be chemotherapy and radiation. The rate of survival is 85% in children and 50% in adults. 2. Chronic lymphocytic leukemia: This is most frequently found in adults over 55 years of age. This type is seldom found in children. The rate of survival is five years and is found in adults. It is not curable. 3. Acute myelogenous leukemia: This form is more easily found in adults than children and in men than women.