Cancer. That one small word has enough power to ignite terror in the hearts of anyone who hears it. That small word is just a simple description that encompasses a vast range of types, affecting all ages and discriminating against no one.
While it is devastating for people of any age to receive that dreaded diagnosis, it’s extra distressing for parents who have just been informed that their child has to take on that battle.
Although any type of cancer can affect all ages, the most prevalent form of childhood cancer is the blood cancer leukemia. Other than recognizing leukemia as a cancer, most people don’t really know much about the disease. Knowing more about it can help others understand more about what families and anyone diagnosed with leukemia really have to endure.
It’s easy to simply define what leukemia is for people. According to lls.org, “Leukemia is characterized by the uncontrolled accumulation of blood cells.”
It goes beyond just being a blood disease, however. Leukemia actually has four major types: Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL), Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL), Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML), and Chronic Myeloid Leukemia (CML).
The different types of cancer have subtypes that should be identified by a doctor. It is important for a doctor to be able to identify the type and subtype of the leukemia in children because according to cancer.org, “The type and subtype of leukemia a child has plays a major role in both treatment options and the child’s outlook.”
The most common type, acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL), is fast growing and forms cells called lymphoblasts. It has to major subtypes: B-cell ALL and T-cell ALL. Most of the time with children who have ALL, the cancer starts in the early form of B-cells; however, older children are more often effected with T-cell ALL. T-cell ALL can often cause an enlarged thymus, sometimes leading to breathing problems. It can also spread to the fluid surrounding the brain and spinal cord early on.
Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is another form of fast growing leukemia that starts in one of the types of bone marrow cells. It has multiple subtypes that are based on the type of bone marrow cell is derives from and how mature the cells are, if the leukemia cells have gene changes, if it is related to the treatment of an earlier cancer, or if the child has Down Syndrome.
Chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) develops more slowing than acute leukemia. It isn’t very common for children, but it is possible. Instead of subtypes, CML develops in three phase. In the first phase, chronic phase, children may have mild symptoms or no symptoms at all, and it responds well to treatment. By phase two, accelerated phase, children could have the following symptoms: fever, night sweats, poor appetite, and weight loss. The leukemia doesn’t respond as well to treatment in phase two. The last phase, blast phase, sees the leukemia spread to tissues and organs outside of the bone marrow. When it reaches phase three, it behaves more like an acute form of leukemia, and children with it tend to have fever, poor appetite, and weight loss.
As far as prevalence, lls.org was able to look at studies to develop the following statistics:
• In 2021, about 2,940 children and adolescents younger than 15 were expected to be diagnosed with leukemia in the United States.
• About 31% of cancer cases in children and adolescents younger than 15 are leukemia.
• ALL is the most common cancer in children and adolescents younger than 20, accounting for 18.7% of all the cancer cases.
The signs of acute leukemia are not unique to leukemia and could be caused by more common conditions. Some of the symptoms that children face are easy bruising and bleeding, paleness or staying tired, and/or reoccurring minor infections or poor healing of smalls cuts. Some people may not even demonstrate any major signs or symptoms, and it is caught from annual checkups and testing. The only way to actually identify leukemia is through specific blood tests that look at the cells in the blood and bone marrow.
When patients are officially diagnosed with leukemia, they are given treatments based on what will work for their specific type and subtype of the disease. It’s important that anyone diagnosed with ALL or AML start treatment very soon after the diagnosis because of how quickly it moves. Some of the treatments used could include chemotherapy, targeted therapies (radiation), monoclonal antibody therapy, immunotherapy, and stem cell transplantation.
For children who require stem cell transplantation, they are at the mercy of locating a match for their bone marrow. Unfortunately, many people do not know the process to become a match to donate bone marrow that could possibly save the life of a child who is in need. There is a database that is easy to submit information to in order to be a marrow donor, and donors may or may not receive a call for years depending on the need and type of the child.
Anyone who would like to become a marrow donor and possibly help save a life only has to follow some simple steps:
1. Go to my.bethematch.org and complete the registry of medical questions.
2. Use the swab kit the company sends you to swab the inside of your cheek and send it back to them.
3. They’ll place you on their registry after testing and logging your swab sample.
4. If you’re ever found to be a potential match, be ready to donate.
So why is it so important to learn anything about leukemia or any cancer, especially when it involves children?
The answer is simple. The more people know about them, there is a better chance of finding a cure. The number of children diagnosed with cancer in the United States alone is staggering, and the little care shown by many is even more shocking. One website, alexslemonade.org, is a nonprofit that attempts to raise money for research into childhood cancer. Based on her research on nationally accredited sites, such as the National Center for Biotechnology Information, National Cancer Institute, World Health Organization, National Institutes of Health, and Lancet, the following statistics about childhood cancer have been found:
• Each day, 47 children are diagnosed with cancer in the United States, which means more than 17,000 children in the United States are diagnosed each year.
• Cancer is the leading cause of death by disease in American children, resulting in the death of approximately 1,800 kids each year.
• In the United States, 84% of children diagnosed with cancer are alive at least five years diagnosis; however, that does not mean they are cured or free from long-term side effects.
• Childhood cancer research is consistently underfunded. Less than 4% of the federal budget for cancer research is dedicated to childhood cancer.
While it isn’t a topic anyone really wants to discuss, families everywhere are suffering and taking it one day at a time as they live with a diagnosis they never wanted to hear. It is important for everyone to learn the facts about it and know what to look out for and even learn different ways to help, such as bone marrow donation.
See next week’s Tribune for a story on one local family who is dealing with this disease.
