Acute Myeloid Leukemia: Symptoms and Treatment

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Leukemia strikes early blood-forming cells, usually the white blood cells, but sometimes it occurs in other types of blood cells. According to the American Cancer Society’s 2018 estimated statistics, there will be about 60,300 new cases of leukemia in the United States in 2018, and about 24,370 deaths will result from this disease. There are several different types of leukemia, such as Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia, Acute Myeloid Leukemia, Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia, and Chronic Myeloid Leukemia. Each type has its own risk factors, symptoms, and treatment options.

Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML)

AML begins in the bone marrow, but usually moves quickly into the bones, and sometimes to other parts of the body, such as lymph nodes, liver, spleen, central nervous system, and testicles.

The American Cancer Society estimates 19,520 new cases of AML for 2018, with nearly all of them occurring in adults (average age is 68). About 10,670 deaths are expected from this disease.

Causes of Acute Myeloid Leukemia

While it is unclear what causes most cases of AML, some known risk factors include the following:

Smoking
Gender (higher in males)
Genetic syndromes
Family history
Older age
Exposure to chemicals like Benzene
Blood disorders like Polycythemia
Chemotherapy drugs like cisplatin and cyclophosphamide.
Radiation exposure

Symptoms of Acute Myeloid Leukemia

The general symptoms of AML include the following:

Fatigue
Weight loss
Loss of appetite
Shortness of breath
Fever and Night sweats
Headaches
Persistent infections
Easy Bruising, Gum Bleeding or frequent nosebleeds
Enlarged lymph nodes
Other symptoms caused specifically by high numbers of leukemia cells include slurred speech or Confusion

Diagnosis of Acute Myeloid Leukemia

If signs and symptoms indicate the need, certain steps will be taken to diagnose AML:

Medical history and physical exam
Blood tests blood counts and blood smear
Bone marrow aspiration and biopsy
Lumbar puncture (spinal tap)
Imaging tests including X-rays, CT scan and Bone scan

Staging of Acute Myeloid Leukemia

AML is not “staged” like other cancers. Instead, it is categorized based on factors such as its subtype (based on the lab tests), the patient’s age, and other lab results. There are two types of classification systems.The most recent system, created by the World Health Organization, is based on certain factors of the disease that the previous system overlooked. This new system uses the following categories:

AML with certain genetic abnormalities
AML with myelodysplasia-related changes
AML related to previous chemotherapy or radiation
AML not otherwise specified
Myeloid sarcoma
Myeloid proliferations related to Down Syndrome
Undifferentiated and bi-phenotypic acute leukemia

Treatment of Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Because AML is not a single disease, but a group of related diseases, treatment options vary, as does the response to these treatments.

Chemotherapy
Targeted therapy
Stem cell transplant
Surgery
Radiation therapy

Prevention of Acute Myeloid Leukemia

As with many cancers, not smoking is the greatest known way to prevent AML. However, most of the known risk factors cannot be avoided, so there is really no known way to prevent the majority of the cases.