Leukemia or "blood cancer" is a cancer originating in the body’s blood forming tissues, which become cancerous. The bone marrow erroneously starts producing a large number of white blood cells, which grow to a large, abnormal size, leading to carcinogenic tissue. The four main types of leukemia are:
1. Acute Myelogenous Leukemia
2. Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia
3. Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia
4. Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia
Acute leukemia is the condition in which white blood cells completely lose their property and increase in number and size, becoming cancerous. Chronic leukemia cells retain some of their white blood cell functionality while becoming cancerous in majority.
Common symptoms of all types of leukemia are fever, fatigue, unexplained weight loss, bleeding gums or rectum, acute headache, swollen lymph nodes, swollen abdomen, loss of appetite, and pain in bones and joints.
Leukemia Symptoms in Adults:
Symptoms in adults are flu-like, including regular infections, fevers, and chills. Other symptoms occurring when the disease spreads to the brain are chronic fatigue, loss of strength, headaches with possible seizures, lack of clear vision, loss of balance, and nausea. Severe joint-pains are a part of leukemia symptoms accompanied with a possible loss of appetite as well as weight and recurrent abdominal pain due to increase in size of the spleen and liver.
Leukemia Symptoms in Children:
Children with leukemia are more susceptible to infections. In addition, they do not respond to antibiotics when administered for different diseases. In addition, childhood leukemia increases the effect of small cuts and bruises while in the case of bleeding, clotting does not occur easily and in a normal frame of time. When leukemia cells deposit under the bone surface and in joints, children also experience joint and bone pain, though it may be less severe than that for adults. Common symptoms of leukemia include sudden weight loss, no appetite, vomiting, and headache with seizures.
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