aml leukemia | Acute myelogenous leukemia - Symptoms and causes

AML, Type of Leukemia in Adults



Leukemia, or blood cancer, is common in children. But there are more types of leukemia diagnosed or found in adults, namely Acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Like other types of leukemia, AML is a cancer of the blood and spinal cord. Symptoms of AML are quite numerous, among which are easily injured, painful or weak bones, fatigue, fever, often bleeding from the nose or gums, shortness of breath and sometimes accompanied by weight loss.

AML is rarely seen in under 40s. There are many possible causes of AML, including blood disorders, inherited diseases, environmental exposures, or the effects of certain drugs. But until now the exact cause of AML is unknown.

In Indonesia there is no exact data how many people with AML. In America, the estimated number of deaths caused by AML between 2009-2013 reaches 100,000. The case reached 4.1 per 100,000 men and women per year with 2.8 deaths per 100,000 men and women per year. The risk of a person having an AML is 0.5%.

AML is a type of cancer when the spinal cord as a blood cell manufacturer produces abnormal blood cells, either white blood cells, red blood cells, or platelets. Acute understanding of acute myeloid leukemia is, this type of leukemia can deteriorate very quickly if not done therapy, and can be deadly in just a matter of months. While "myeloid" refers to the type of cells that have abnormalities.

In this type of acute leukemia, cells that are damaged are immature blood cells (called blast cells), so the course of the disease is faster because it follows the nature of blast cells that divide rapidly. When cancer occurs, these blast cells stop dividing. While in chronic leukemia, the damaged cells are mature cells but in abnormal conditions. For example not able to fight infections like normal white blood cells. Chronic leukemia life opportunities are generally longer and the disease develops more slowly, although treatment is more difficult than acute leukemia.

Because AML is fatal, it is important to start treatment as soon as possible after diagnosis. The main treatment is chemotherapy. The goal is to kill cancer cells. Radiation therapy, not always given for AML, but can be given to kill cancer cells that have reached the brain, bone, or testes. Radiation therapy is also given before the patient undergoes a stem cell transplant.

Spinal bone marrow transplantation is a promising treatment option. The patient's spinal cord is replaced with stem cells taken from the donor or from the patient's own bone marrow, or from peripheral blood.



Acute myelogenous leukemia in adults
Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL)
Acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL)
Chronic myeloid leukemia (CML)
Hairy cell leukemia