Chronic
Lymphocytic Leukemia
Leukemia is cancer of the white blood cells. White blood cells help your
body fight infection. Your blood cells form in your bone marrow. In leukemia,
however, the bone marrow produces abnormal white blood cells. These cells crowd
out the healthy blood cells, making it hard for blood to do its work. In
chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), there are too many of a specific type of
white blood cell called a lymphocyte.
CLL is the second most common form of leukemia in adults. It often
occurs during or after middle age and rarely occurs in children.
Usually CLL does not cause any symptoms at all. If you
have symptoms, they may include:
- · Painless swelling of the lymph nodes in the neck, underarm, stomach or groin
- · Feeling very tired
- · Pain or a feeling of fullness below the ribs
- · Fever and infection
- · Weight loss
Tests that examine the blood, bone marrow, and lymph nodes diagnose CLL.
Your doctor may choose to just monitor you until you have symptoms. Treatments
include radiation therapy, chemotherapy, surgery to remove the spleen, and
targeted immune therapy.
