Leukemia and its treatment

What is Leukemia?

Leukemia is the cancer of blood cells. When the bone marrow produces abnormal white blood cells and when they multiply rapidly it causes leukemia. The rapid multiplication of WBC’s surrounds normal blood cells and causes anemia and bleeding.  Mutations in the DNA are the main cause of leukemia. Factors like genes and environmental factors may also trigger leukemia. Some early symptoms of leukemia include a lump in the neck, groin or armpit and sudden weight loss.

Treatment of Leukemia

Depending on your age, health and few other factors, the physician will decide the most suitable treatment. Any one of the following treatments may be advised to the patient.

1.Chemo Therapy: This therapy kills the leukemia cells.

2.Targeted Therapy: This therapy makes use of special drugs that target specific cells within the cancer causing cells.

3. Biological Therapy: This therapy enables the immune system identify and fight leukemia cells.

4.Radiation Therapy: In this therapy, X-rays or high energy beams are used to stop the growth of leukemia cells and kill them. This therapy may target either the whole body or a specific area in the body.

5.Stem cell Therapy: To undergo this therapy a patient will first have to be treated with chemotherapy or radiation therapy.This destroys the leukemia cells in the bone marrow. Next,stem cells are made use of to rebuild the bone marrow.The stem cells could either be your own or obtained from a donor.

In case you have doubts regarding leukemia, it is advisable that you visit a  hematologist at Kharghar Medicity Hospital and get yourself examined and get all your doubts cleared.