ACUTE MYELOGENOUS LEUKEMIA (AML)

Acute Myelogenous leukemia (AML)

Table of Contents

Contents

Introduction3

Discussion3

Relative Impact of the Disease Process on a Client4

References7

Bulimia and Acute Myelogenous leukemia (AML)

Introduction

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a blood cancer disease, and is the second most common pediatric leukemia disease. According to research, in United States, each year one case of AML is diagnosed.

Discussion

The main region of Leukemia where it starts its origination is bone marrow, it is a spongy tissue having bones in it and it is the main area where blood is found. The development of normal immature blood cells starts inside the bone narrow and results in different types of blood cells. There is a great production of huge number of abnormal cells and these blood cells are called blasts or myeloblasts. These myeloblasts have a set of genetic errors or mutations, causing uncontrolled growth. The myeloblasts divide without self-control of normal leukocytes (Baker 2002). Finally, there is an accumulation of myeloblasts that invade the bone marrow. They can also seep into the bloodstream by invading the lymph nodes, brain, skin, liver, kidneys, ovaries, testes and other organs. Sometimes there is the formation of a solid tumor called a chloroma.

The cure rate for AML is good; approximately 50% of children are cured, meaning that the AML does not reappear after treatment. Several factors affect the prognosis and treatment of each patient with AML:

Down syndrome: In general, patients with Down syndrome require less intensive treatment and respond well to it.

Leukemia Subtype: The subtype M3 AML patients require less intensive treatment and usually do not respond to bone marrow transplantation.

Chromosomal changes in leukemia cells, leukemia cells or blasts often have genetic mutations, which do not happen with normal body cells. One of these mutations is the loss of one chromosome 7, modification known as monosomy 7. Patients with ...