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Acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL)

• Overview
• Symptoms
• Treatment
• Prevention

Alternative Names:

ALL; Acute childhood leukemia; Cancer - acute childhood leukemia (ALL); Leukemia - acute childhood (ALL)

Treatment:

The goal of treatment is to get the blood counts and the bone marrow to normal. If this occurs, the cancer is considered to be in remission.

If you have acute lymphocytic leukemia, you'll need chemotherapy . For the first round of chemotherapy, you may need to go to the hospital for 3 to 6 weeks, but may later get chemotherapy on an outpatient basis. If you have a low white blood cell count, you may need to be placed in a room by yourself so you do not catch an infection.

Additional treatments depend on other symptoms. They may include:

• Transfusion of blood products, such as platelets or special red blood cells, to fight anemia
• Antibiotics to fight infection

If you go into remission, you may receive additional chemotherapy or radiation therapy to kill any cancer cells that are in the spinal fluid. You may also receive chemotherapy from time to time to prevent relapse.

If your leukemia returns or does not respond to other treatments, your doctor may recommend a bone marrow transplant after high-dose chemotherapy.

Support Groups:

Patients can ease the stress of their illness by joining a support group where members share common experiences and problems.

See also: Cancer - support group

Expectations (prognosis):

Children usually have a better outcome than adults. The majority of adults go into complete remission. Without treatment, a person with ALL can expect to live for about 3 months.

Complications:

• DIC (disseminated intravascular coagulation)
• Relapse of ALL
• Severe infection

Calling your health care provider:

Call your health care provider if you develop ALL-like symptoms, or if you have ALL and you have a persistent fever or other signs of infection.

References:

Abeloff MD, Armitage JO, Niederhuber JE, Kastan MB, McKena WG. Clinical Oncology. 3rd ed. Orlando, Fl: Churchill Livingstone; 2004.

Hoffman R, Benz EJ, Shattil SS, et al. Hematology: Basic Principles and Practice. 4th ed. Orlando, Fl: Churchill Livingstone; 2005.

American Cancer Society. Cancer Facts and Figures 2007. Atlanta, GA: American Cancer Society; 2007.

• Review Date: 4/27/2007
• Reviewed By: Rita Nanda, M.D., Department of Medicine. Section of Hematology/Oncology, University of Chicago Medical Center, Chicago, IL. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.

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