All About Leukemia

A drug used to treat multiple sclerosis, Mitoxantrone an immunosuppressant has been found to heighten the risks of contracting leukemia as a side effect. The drug has been approved by the FDA and the side-effect is due to new research onto the interaction of the drug and the body’s response to it. High dosage of the drug has also been found to cause a lot of heart disease and can even cause irreversible heart damage according to the latest data from research.

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Military personnel and people who work with radioactive compounds each and every day accept the fact that leukemia, often a risk of their jobs. New research in the use and administration of biphosphates to counteract the effects of radiation induced leukemia is proving promising to help reduce job related-risks for such people. People who work in space line astronauts of the many space agencies worldwide are also at risk of high exposure to radiation from space being out of the earth’s protective atmosphere which protects most of us here on the earth’s surface. Synthesized into chemopreventive medication they are proving effective in initial trials. They have been found to have the uncanny ability to remove uranium from the body which would be quite useful for people who handle and use radioactive munitions.

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A newly discovered cancer-causing protein has been found to lessen the effectivity of the drug is now the target of researchers who are trying to block the said protein. This enhances the ability of Imatinib to treat leukemia making the targeting drug’s work easier and better. Proven to be effective against chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), the drug’s efficacy was unknowingly suppressed by some agent which led to the discovery of the cancer causing protein which blocked the drug lessening its effectivity.

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Leukemia is cancer of the blood cells. In a healthy person, healthy blood cells are formed in the bone marrow in a normal, controlled manner. On the other hand, a person with leukemia produces large numbers of abnormal blood cells, usually white blood cells.

Chemotherapy is one of the treatment options in leukemia. There are many routes of administration in chemotherapy, oral (mouth), IV (intravenous), and intrathecal. The oral route is the least invasive but is absorbed by the bloodstream the slowest. When administered intravenously, drugs are absorbed rapidly. The problem with the IV route is that drugs do not reach the central nervous system due to the blood brain barrier. To answer this problem, doctors use another technique in giving chemotherapeutic drugs — the intrathecal route.

As with any other cancer treatments, it is important to consult your doctor to fully understand chemotherapy, including its side effects.

Researchers have recently discovered that a drug used to treat drug addiction, methadone has a very desirable effect on leukemia cells, killing them while not affecting the normal ones. This comes as a surprise for not only does it kill leukemia cells, it has also shown effectivity against forms of the disease that have previously been resistant to current drug therapies being used today. The methadone acts on the cancer cell’s by activating the mitochondrial pathway which activated specific enzymes within causing it to die off. This process, called pre-programmed death has also been observed with difficult cases that have not responded well to other treatment options. Animal studies are underway to determine the proper dosage and efficacy of using the drug as treatment for leukemia sufferers. They have proven that even low doses of the drug have had noticeable effects on the cancer cells killing them off making it one of the greatest breakthroughs in leukemia research.

People who live in areas where drilling for natural gas is underway should be aware that the current practice of the drilling industry releases dangerous levels of the cancerous chemical benzene into the water table. Benzene is a colorless, sweet smelling and highly toxic. Considered to be the highest cause of leukemia and some forms of cancer, it was even used as an odorant in the early 1900′s due to the sweet smell. Absorbed into the body in large enough quantities can be fatal and long term exposure has it absorbed into the cells causing DNA to mutate resulting in many forms of cancer. It is widely used as an industrial chemical and is vital for the manufacture of most plastics, it has been recently found in soft drinks and computer casings resulting in several checks by the USFDA and other agencies around the world.

写真提供: medicineworld.org

白血病には、様々な治療法と病期があります。 その一つに、化学療法と放射線療法の組み合わせがあり、その治療法は導入と呼ばれます。 それは異常細胞が骨髄の中で形成されるのをストップする治療で、大体一ヶ月効果があり、もし目標が達成されない場合は、再度行う事が出来ます。 強化療法は別の病期です。これは白血病が血液テストや骨髄検査で血液中に見られなくても、体内になお潜んでいる可能性があるため、継続される治療です。 維持療法は、数年間、弱めの療法を継続する事により、白血病のない骨髄を維持することです。 定期健診が必要とされ、再発病を発見したり、治療の副作用を管理します。 再発期は、骨髄が異常細胞を再び作り出す時期をいいます。 それは治療中いつでも起こり、また治療が終了して何年も経ってから起こる事もあります。

Image Source: images.encarta.msn.com

Hairy Cell Leukemia is a chronic disease, which will never totally disappear once you acquire it. It is a rare condition often described as a slow growing cancer of the blood. The bone marrow is abnormally producing too much lymphocytes or B cells. This white blood cell is responsible for fighting infection. The surplus B cells looks hairy when you view it in the microscope, that’ how it got its name. The hairy part is actually the villi or the fine projections from the cell’s surface. As the abnormality increases, lesser healthy white blood cells, RBC and platelets are made. Men are said to be more prone to having this disease than women do. Its only limited to adults. Children and teenagers are not prone to this sickness. The cause of the disease is yet to be known and treatment can just lead to remission. It is not curable yet.

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全てのがんは、血液や他の組織を作る細胞から生まれます。 通常細胞は、人体の必要に応じて分裂し成長します。 細胞が古くなったとき、新しい細胞が取って代わります。 しかし白血病になると、新しい細胞が必要なときに供給されず、古い細胞が死ななければならない時にが死にません。 白血病は血液細胞から発症するがんです。 白血病の確固たる原因はまだ明らかになっていませんが、その危険が高まる要素があります。

高いレベルの放射能にさらされると、他の人に比べて白血病の危険性が高まります。 ある特定の化学物質にさらされることも、白血病を起こす原因になりかねます。 抗がん剤の治療を受けたがん患者も白血病を発症する危険があります。 染色体の異常によって引き起こされるダウン症、特定の遺伝病およびいくつかはその危険を高める可能性がある。 人間のT細胞のI白血病のウィルス(HTLV-I)-このウィルスにより、稀なタイプであるT細胞の白血病として知られる慢性リンパ球性白血病を引き起こします。 しかしながら、白血病は伝染するものではありません。
骨髄異形成症候群の人々は、急性骨髄性白血病を発祥する危険性が高です。
白血病のリスク負っている人はほとんど発病していません。 言い換えれば、危険要素に全く関係ない人が発病しています。 白血病の危険性があると思う人、またはがん家系の人は、そのことについて医師と相談することをお勧めします。 医師は、その危険を減らすための提案、また、検診などのスケジュールを案内してくれます。

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Leukemia has various treatment and stages. One of it is a combination of chemotherapy and radiation and medications are called induction. It is the process of abnormal cells to stop being made in the bone marrow and May last approximately one month and can be repeated if the goal is not achieved. Intensification is another stage; it is continued treatment even though leukemia may not be visible in blood test or bone marrow examination but possible that they are still present in the body. Maintenance is the stage that maintains leukemia-free bone marrow by continuing less intense chemotherapy several years. Regular visits to the doctor are required to detect recurrent disease and manage any side effects of the treatment. Relapse stage is when the bone marrow begins making abnormal cells again. It can occur during any of the stages of treatment, or years after treatment have ended.