Cancer is a disease in which cells inside the body divide abnormally. Under normal conditions, healthy cells grow and divide according to the needs of the body, but in cancerous conditions, cells grow and divide abnormally. Cells die or become damaged as they age and are replaced by healthy cells.
Blood cancer types
- There are three major types of blood cancer:
- leukemia
- lymphoma
- Myloma
Leukemia
This type of blood cancer is thought to cause excessive production of white blood cells, which are unable to fight infection. Leukemia can be divided into four categories.
First: Acute lymphocytic leukemia (it affects the white blood cells of the bone marrow and spreads very rapidly).
Second: Acute myeloid leukemia (originating in myeloid cells, which are found in white blood cells, red blood cells, and platelets. It also spreads very rapidly).
Third: Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (this starts in the lymphocytes located in your bone marrow but spreads slowly).
Fourth: Chronic myeloid leukemia (it affects myeloid cells and develops slowly).
Lymphoma
This form of blood cancer affects your lymph system. This is a network of nerves present in your lymph nodes, spleen and thymus gland. Lymphoma originates in two types of lymphocytes:
first : B cells (Hodgkin lymphoma)
second: T cells (non-Hodgkin lymphoma).
It impairs your immune activities and causes swollen lymph nodes.
Myeloma
Bood Cancer
This cancer affects the plasma cells of your bone marrow. These white blood cells are responsible for making antibodies to prevent infection. Myeloma damages your bone, blood and kidneys (kidneys), resulting in diseases like bone pain, weakening/fracture of bone, excess calcium in the blood (hypercalcemia), anemia, bleeding, kidney failure, etc.
Risk factors behind blood cancer
- The exact cause of blood cancer is unknown, but certain factors can increase your risk of blood cancer, including:
- Someone in the family is suffering from blood cancer.
- Exposure to high frequencies due to work in a nuclear reactor or prior cancer treatment.
- Genetic disorders such as Down syndrome.
- Exposure to harmful chemicals such as benzene.
- Being infected with a viral infection such as HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Disorder) or EBV (Epstein Barr Virus).
- Smoking and using tobacco.
- obesity.
- Weak immune system.
Major symptoms of blood cancer
There are no major symptoms of blood cancer. Also your physical signs can vary depending on the type of blood cancer you have.
- Extreme tiredness and weakness.
- Difficulty breathing.
- Dizziness.
- Yellowing of the skin
- Pain in chest.
- Injury.
- Bleeding in the gums.
- Small red spots on the skin due to bursting of blood vessels.
- Heavy menstruation.
- Black stool or bleeding during defecation.
- Fever and severe night sweats.
- Unnecessary weight loss.
- bone pain.
- Nausea with abdominal pain.
- Too much thirst
- Constipation.
- loss of appetite.
- Swelling in the ankles.
- itchy skin.
- Numbness in your hands and feet. pain in them.
blood cancer diagnosis
If you experience the above symptoms then you need to consult your doctor. Your doctor may recommend some tests to detect blood cancer. Common clinical tests for blood cancer are:
Complete blood count test: This blood test gives your doctor detailed information about the amount of a specific type of blood cell in a sample. If the number of blood cells is higher or lower than normal, it can be a sign of blood cancer. In such cases, your doctor may also recommend a second test to confirm the cancer.
Blood Protein Test:Blood cells also contain immunoglobulins, which are immune cell proteins and help you fight infection. In the case of myeloma cancer, there is an abnormal production of these cells. Therefore, your doctor may recommend a blood protein test to determine whether you are suffering from blood cancer or not.
Biopsy: If a CBC report shows increased or decreased blood cell counts or if a blood protein test shows abnormal levels of immunoglobulins, a bone marrow biopsy is done to confirm blood cancer.
Additional tests such as flow cytometry and cytogenetics are also performed to detect specific types of blood cancers and their associated diseases.
blood cancer treatment
The treatment of blood cancer depends on 3 major factors:
type of cancer
cancer stage
patient's age
Here are the different treatment options for blood cancer:
Stem cell transplantation: In this procedure, stem cells, peripheral blood, or umbilical cards are collected from the bone marrow and mixed with healthy blood-forming cells. is infused.
Chemotherapy: This involves the use of anti-cancer drugs, which stop the growth of cancer cells. These drugs are given to the patient through an injection or by an oral method. In some cases, chemotherapy may require taking several drugs at the same time. In some cases, a patient with blood cancer may have to undergo chemotherapy and then stem cell transplantation.
Radiation therapy:This involves the use of radiation to destroy cancer cells and therefore radiation therapy may be recommended before a stem cell transplant.
