Surviving Leukemia and Hodgkin's Lymphoma , livre ebook

SurvivingLeukemia and Hodgkin's Lymphoma
AnOverview Of Effective Treatment Methods
By:Melinda Baxter
Table of Contents
Publishers Notes
Dedication
Chapter 1- What IsAcute Myeloid Leukemia?
Chapter 2- Hodgkin'sLymphoma
Chapter 3- Subtypes andthe Risk Factors
Chapter 4- YourDoctor’s Appointment
Chapter 5- Testing and Diagnosis
Chapter 6- Hodgkin'sLymphoma Treatment
Chapter 7- Understandingthe Concept Of the Stem Cell Transplant
Chapter 8- UsingAlternative Methods
Chapter 9- LifeAfter Chemotherapy - Hair Replacement
Chapter 10- LivingHealthy & Surviving Cancer
About The Author
Publishers Notes
Disclaimer
This publicationis intended to provide helpful and informative material. It is not intended todiagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any health problem or condition, nor isintended to replace the advice of a physician. No action should be taken solelyon the contents of this book. Always consult your physician or qualifiedhealth-care professional on any matters regarding your health and beforeadopting any suggestions in this book or drawing inferences from it.
The author andpublisher specifically disclaim all responsibility for any liability, loss orrisk, personal or otherwise, which is incurred as a consequence, directly orindirectly, from the use or application of any contents of this book.
Any and allproduct names referenced within this book are the trademarks of theirrespective owners. None of these owners have sponsored, authorized, endorsed,or approved this book.
Always read allinformation provided by the manufacturers’ product labels before using theirproducts. The author and publisher are not responsible for claims made bymanufacturers.
© 2013
Manufactured inthe United States of America
Dedication
This book isdedicated to all those who struggle with debilitating diseases like leukemia.
Chapter 1- What Is Acute Myeloid Leukemia?
Acute Myeloid Leukemia otherwiseknown as AML or granulocytic or myelogenous leukemia is an aggressive cancerwhich attacks the non-lymphocyte white blood cells. There are quite a fewsub-categories of acute myeloid leukemia. Some of these types are acutepromyelocytic leukemia, acute myeloblastic leukemia, acute monocytic leukemia,erythroleukemia, acute myelomonocytic leukemia, and acute megakaryoblasticleukemia.

With acute myeloid leukemia,cancerous blood cells fail to mature into normal blood elements and spread intothe marrow of the bone, replacing the marrow's natural components. Theimmaturity of these white blood cells makes them impossible to functionproperly resulting in the patient's inability to effectively prevent infectionsor even fight them. Consequently, with acute myeloid leukemia, there aredecreased numbers of normal red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets,leading to symptoms of anemia, infections and consistent bleeding.
Acute myeloid leukemia has beengenerally observed to exist more commonly in older adults. In the USA, acutemyeloid leukemia occurs in less than one per 100,000 people under the age of 30and in more than 11 per 100,000 people older than 30.
The existence of Acute MyeloidLeukemia or AML is normally quite difficult to diagnose as early warning signsmay be similar to the common flu or any other non fatal disease. Some of themore common symptoms of Acute Myeloid Leukemia are; nose bleeds, easy bruisingof the skin, fatigue especially after any physical activity, a person beingprone to different infections and difficulty of wound healing due to lack ofproper function of the white blood cells. It is also good to note that somesubtypes of acute myeloid leukemia have some specific symptoms. In somesubtypes, leukemic cells spread from the circulating blood into other tissuesof the body, for example into the gum where it causes swelling of the gums andsubstantial discomfort while chewing.
A physician should be immediatelyconsulted should these signs persist: fever, weakness or tiredness, or aches inthe bones or joints. If a patient has acute symptoms of myeloid leukemia, adoctor may order blood tests specifically designed to enable him/her to countthe number of varying blood cells. If the results of the blood tests indicateacute myeloid leukemia, the doctor may do a bone marrow biopsy to determineexactly what kind of acute myeloid leukemia is present and plan the besttreatment.
The best way to treat a patient withacute myeloid leukemia is to start immediately after diagnosis as theprogression rate of this disease is extremely fast. There are varioustreatments available for acute myeloid leukemia. The primary successfultreatment of acute myeloid leukemia over the years has been to introduce thepatient to chemotherapy with the hope to first destroy the leukemic cells andthen induce remission. Normally if the chemotherapy is successful allpathological cells will be completely removed and the blood cells will functionnormally. When remission is evident, a varying dose of chemotherapy is given toprevent leukemia from reoccurring. This second dose is called consolidationtherapy. In some cases, radiation therapy may be used for acute myeloidleukemia treatment.
Though successful; chemotherapy hasits own side effects, in that not only does it kill cancer cells, but itdestroys normal cells as well, making the immune system weaker and increasingthe possibility of the patient contracting infections. As a result patientswith acute myeloid leukemia during treatment are separated from other people toreduce the possibility of contracting any form of infection. Othercomplications that can arise due to chemotherapy treatment include severe life threateningbleeding as there have been occasions where the cancer returns after treatment.
When the symptoms are no longervisible after a period of treatment, the patient is said to be in remission,but in most patients complete remission occurs. If the cancer does not relapsewithin a 5 year period after diagnosis and courses of treatment, the patient isconsidered as being permanently cured. Though, such cases are more common inyounger people than in patients above 65 years.
To prevent acute myeloid leukemia,it is highly recommended to use your head gear and to adhere to protectivemeasures if you work around strong radiation or occupational chemicals. Thiswill not only save you from leukemia but also from other forms of cancer.
Bone marrow transplants andbiological therapy are among other alternative options being studied inclinical trials for acute myeloid leukemia.