About Leukemia

Leukemia is a type of cancer that affects the body's white blood cells (WBCs).

Normally, WBCs help fight infection and protect the body against disease. But in leukemia, WBCs turn cancerous and multiply when they shouldn't, resulting in too many abnormal WBCs, which then interfere with organ function.

If too many immature WBCs that produce granulocytes and monocytes are made, a child will develop acute myeloid leukemia (AML). This type of leukemia affects 20% of kids with this cancer of the blood cells.

Thanks to advances in therapy and clinical trials, the outlook for kids with AML is promising. With treatment, most are cured.

Causes

The cause of AML is unknown, though doctors know that certain medical conditions — including inherited genetic problems such as Down syndrome, neurofibromatosis type 1, Fanconi anemia, and Noonan's syndrome — can make a child more likely to develop the disease.

AML is also more common in kids receiving medicines to suppress their immune systems after organ transplants and in those who've been treated with chemotherapy or radiation. In fact, AML is the most common type of secondary cancer in children who have previously undergone cancer treatment.

In addition, kids with an identical twin who was diagnosed with leukemia before age 6 have a 20% to 25% chance of developing AML. Fraternal twins and other siblings of kids with leukemia have two to four times the average risk of developing it, too.

Research studies are investigating the possibility that environmental factors may predispose a child to leukemia. For example, prenatal radiation exposure (such as X-rays) may trigger the disease in a developing fetus. Women who are pregnant (or suspect they're pregnant) should inform their doctors before undergoing tests or medical procedures that involve radiation.