What is Acute myeloid leukemia:
The white blood cells are the cells involved in the body’s defense. Within find different types of leukocytes such as polymorphonuclear leukocytes, lymphocytes or monocytes, each with a specific function within the immune system.
Leukocytes originate in the bone marrow cells from immature blasts that are known to create differentiating different types of leukocytes. When this occurs, for different reasons, a loss of control mechanisms of proliferation of these white blood cells of leukemia speech, ie cancer blasts leukocytes and their precursors.
Depending on the type of blasts in leukemia involving lymphatic leukemias are distinguished, if involved lymphoblasts, precursors of lymphocytes, or myeloid leukemias, whether they are the precursors of red blood cells, platelets and leukocytes from other cells that cause cancer.
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Also, depending on your establishment and the proportion of mature and immature cells involved in leukemia, it may be acute, with a predominance of immature forms and rapid evolution, or chronic, with a greater number of mature cells and slower progression.
Therefore, when a patient suffers from a hematologic cancer cells that are created in the bone marrow where a predominance of immature cells called myeloblasts, the precursor of leukocytes that are not lymphocytes, erythrocytes and platelets, classify this disease as acute myeloid leukemia.
How does it occur ?
Acute myeloid leukemia can occur at any stage of life, but more often in adult life. Generally has a worse prognosis than acute lymphatic leukemia, especially in elderly or rare genetic disorders.
Factors to be considered as possible causes of this type of leukemias include
genetic factors, namely, alterations in the chromosomes that predispose to the development of these diseases.
ionizing radiation, as in the case of high-dose radiotherapy or exposure to uncontrolled nuclear radiation.
Certain chemicals such as benzene, alkylating agents, nitrosoureas or chloramphenicol.
Infections some types of virus, specifically certain retroviruses.
The exposure to these risk factors as well as the existing genetic predisposition makes occurring mutations in certain genes, especially those that control both cell proliferation mechanisms, ie the ability of the cells to replicate, as in the genes responsible for mediating programmed cell death, the process by which cells depleted, old and sick die to make way for new cells. If these mechanisms are altered, there will be an excessive formation of cells that are immature, they will play before reaching maturity, and also not subject to programmed cell death, so it will still play constantly. This fact common to all cancers, is also found in acute myeloid leukemia.
As myeloblasts being played uncontrollably generated in the bone marrow, these cells will occupy the entire marrow space so that the other cells unaffected be diminished in number and reproduce least why myeloid leukemia in can give a sharp decrease of leukocytes that are not affected by cancer and anemia and thrombocytopenia if these cell lines are affected by acute myeloid leukemia.
The myeloblasts cancerous enter the blood and from there can colonize other territories, primarily lymph lymphatic system, but also the spleen, liver or other organs.
Within differs acute myeloid leukemias:
Type 1, from undifferentiated cells
Type 2, from undifferentiated myeloblasts
Type 3 from promyelocytes, precursors of different leukocytes or monocytes, lymphocytes not
Type 4 from myelomonocytes , no leukocytes lymphocytes precursors
Type 5 from monoblasts, monocyte precursors
Type 6 from erythroblasts, precursors of erythrocytes
Type 7, from megakaryocytes, platelets precursors
The most common are type 1, 2, 4 and 5. Acute myeloid leukemia type 4 and 5 are those with worse prognosis, while patients with acute myeloid leukemia type 3 have a higher survival.
Acute myeloid leukemia Symptoms
Symptoms are in place abruptly and progress rapidly. You can get an initial clinical fatigue, lack of appetite and weight loss. The occupation of the bone marrow and the subsequent decline in the production of both mature erythrocytes and leukocytes and platelets will cause a state of anemia, (which will involve fatigue, pallor, malaise and other abnormalities), recurrent infections to deficit causes defenses, and hemorrhagic processes by coagulation defects secondary to thrombocytopenia.
Also, when myeloblasts leave the bloodstream and colonize other organs, lymph nodes can be seen, ie, enlarged lymph nodes, liver and spleen. The myeloblasts also invade other organs, such as the central nervous system, skin and gums, particularly in the case of types 4 and 5. The variant type 3 may present a picture of coagulation that occurs within vessels, disseminated intravascular coagulation call.
Sometimes because of the excessive proliferation of cancer cells may be bone pain and these may suffer fractures.
Acute myeloid leukemia Diagnosis
In patients who present a picture of sudden onset of weakness, loss of appetite and weight loss associated with recurrent infections or bleeding problems should be ruled out acute leukemia, particularly myeloid type in adulthood. They perform a blood test, which generally appreciated an increase in blood leukocytes, as when performing analytical counted as mature forms both myeloblasts, although the total number of leukocytes may also appear diminished if not immature forms have reached out to the blood. When separate study, we see that the leukocytes is increased especially at the expense of a greater number of myeloblasts.Also, you can see a decrease in the number of red blood cells and platelets. It must be said, however, that up to 10% of acute myeloid leukemias can present an analytic within normality.
Confirmation of the diagnosis provide the bone marrow biopsy, which will see a ratio of greater than 30% myeloblasts. Different genetic and biochemical tests allow help determine the subtype of acute myeloid leukemia in the patient.
Imaging tests such as ultrasound, magnetic resonance imaging or computed tomography allow assessing the involvement of other organs.
Acute myeloid leukemia Treatment
Whenever possible we will choose bone marrow transplantation as a curative treatment. Otherwise, the treatment will be based on chemotherapy, searching it completely cure the patient, obtaining normalized figures leukocytes, erythrocytes and platelets fall below 5% myeloblasts in the presence of blood. There will be a first round looking remission induction and then several cycles of high-dose intensification. In acute myeloid leukemia type 3 applies trans retinoic acid treatment with which good results are obtained.
Precautions
The only measures to avoid suffering an acute myeloid leukemia would avoid massive exposure to radiation and certain chemicals carcinogenic.