Risks, causes, and symptoms of Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) – Weekly Citizen

With acute types of leukemia such as AML, bone marrow cells don’t mature as expected. These immature cells keep building up as they multiply uncontrolled.

It is also referred to as: Acute myelocytic leukemia or Acute myelogenous leukemia  or  Acute granulocytic leukemia or Acute non-lymphocytic leukemia

Being an Acute type of Cancer it spreads  quickly to the blood and other parts of the body such as: Lymph node, Liver, Spleen, Brain and spinal cord and Testicles

Each person is different, and how acute myeloid leukemia affects them depends on certain things, including how well the cancer responds to treatment. Your outlook is better if:

1. You are younger than 60.
2. You have a lower white blood cell count when you’re diagnosed.
3. You do not have a history of blood disorders or cancers.
4. You do not have certain gene mutations or chromosome changes.

Signs and symptoms of AML include but not limited to : Fever, bone pain, lethargy and fatigue,shortness of breath, pale skin, frequent infections, easy bruising and unusual bleeding, such as frequent nosebleeds and bleeding from the gums.

1. Smoking
2. Exposure to certain chemicals such as benzene (a solvent used in oil refineries and other industries and present in cigarette smoke), pesticides, ionizing radiation, certain cleaning products, detergents, and paint strippers
3. Some chemotherapy drugs used to treat other cancers, such as cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, melphalan, and mitoxantrone
4. Exposure to high doses of radiation
5. Certain blood disorders such as myeloproliferative disorders (for example, chronic myelogenous leukemia)
6. A parent, brother, or sister who has had AML

.