Acute Myelogenous Leukemia

How is Leukemia diagnosed ?

Leukemia can be diagnosed with a variety of tests, and understanding what each test is and what it looks for can make the tests a little less confusing. Doctors sometimes find leukemia after a routine blood test. If you have symptoms that suggest leukemia, your doctor will try to find out what’s causing the problems. Your doctor may ask about your personal and family medical history.

- Physical Examination
An exam is much like any doctor’s appointment; the doctor will take a detailed medical history and thoroughly examine the whole body.
- Blood Tests
To diagnose leukemia, a number of blood tests are performed. These tests are used to evaluate the type and quantity of blood cells that are present, the blood chemistry, and other factors.
- Full blood count
It is used to establish the numbers of different blood cell types in the circulation. A low number of red or white blood cells is described as anemia or leukopenia, respectively.
- Bone Marrow Biopsy
A biopsy takes a small sample of bone marrow tissue from the body. The doctor asks the patient to lie on his or her side and nurses clean the biopsy site with iodine or alcohol. After the site is cleaned, the biopsy site is numbed with a local anesthetic. The doctor uses either a very fine needle to draw out only bone marrow tissue, or a thicker needle to take a small sample of bone and bone marrow. The bone marrow sample is examined under a microscope to check for leukemia cells.
- Cytogenetics
It is a newer type of testing for leukemia. Cytogenetic testing uses a sample taken from a blood draw or a bone marrow or lymph node biopsy. The sample’s chromosomes are microscopically examined for abnormalities that indicate damage to the cells’ DNA.
- Spinal tap
The doctor uses a long, thin needle to remove fluid from the lower spine. The procedure takes about 30 minutes and is performed with local anesthesia. You must lie flat for several hours afterward to keep from getting a headache.
- Chest x-ray
An x-ray can show swollen lymph nodes or other signs of disease in your chest.
- CT scan of the head, chest, and belly, to find out whether leukemia has spread there.
- Lumbar puncture is to find out whether leukemia cells are in your cerebrospinal fluid (CSF).
- Differential blood count (DBC)
It is used to determine the relative proportion of blood cell types within the bloodstream. In particular, the percentage of immature leukemic “blast” cells is noted.
- Hematocrit assay
It is used to determine the proportion of the blood that is occupied by erythrocytes (red blood cells). In adult men, normal is about 46% (39.8–52.2) and in adult women, it is about 40.9% (34.9–46.9).

| More

If you found this post informative, why not sign up to receive new posts ?
It's simple, and free, and you can even opt to receive by email:
Subscribe in a reader
Subscribe to Good Health Tips by Email

Introduction to Acute Myelogenous Leukemia (AML)

Acute myelogenous leukemia (AML) is a cancer of the blood and bone marrow — the spongy tissue inside bones where blood cells are made.

- The word “acute” in acute myelogenous leukemia denotes the disease’s rapid progression and the fact that it affects immature blood cells, rather than mature ones.
- It’s called myelogenous leukemia because it affects a group of white blood cells called the myeloid cells, which normally develop into the various types of mature blood cells, such as red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets.

Causes and Risk factors of AML

- Acute myelogenous leukemia (AML) may occur at any age, but it primarily affects adults and children younger than one year old.
- Bone marrow failure occurs as malignant cells replace normal bone marrow.
- Patients with AML are susceptible to bleeding and infection as the normal blood cells lose their ability to fight microorganisms and decrease in number.
- Radiation, some toxins such as benzene, and some chemotherapy drugs are thought to cause some kinds of leukemia, including AML.
- Genetic abnormalities may also play a role in the development of this condition.
- Immuno-suppression following organ transplantation.
- Blood disorders.

Symptoms of AML

- Abnormal menstrual periods.
- Bleeding from the nose and gums.
- Bruising.
- Bone pain or tenderness.
- Fatigue.
- Fever.
- Paleness.
- Shortness of breath (gets worse with exercise).
- Skin rash or lesion.
- Swollen gums (rare).
- Weight loss.

Diagnosis of AML

AML is diagnosed when blood and bone marrow samples show a large number of leukemia cells. AML has eight subtypes, labeled M0 through M7. The subtypes are based on the type of blood cells affected. To find out the sub type and how well the leukemia might respond to treatment, the samples are looked at to find:
- The number of healthy blood cells.
- The size and number of leukemia cells.
- The changes that appear in the chromosomes of the leukemia cells. This is called cytogenetics.
Other genetic abnormalities, e.g., FLT3 mutation, N-RAS.
Doctors also examine the patient to find out if leukemia cells have spread outside the blood and bone marrow.

Treatment options for AML

For a patient with AML, the treatment plan may include:
- Chemotherapy — drugs that destroy cancer cells or stop them from growing.
- A bone marrow or cord blood transplant (described below).
- All-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) if he or she has the subtype of AML known as promyelocytic leukemia.
- Other newer treatments that were recently developed or are still being studied in clinical trials — you can ask your doctor whether any newer treatments may be options for you.