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Acute lymphocytic leukemia - Risk Factors
- Highlights
- Introduction
- Causes
- Risk Factors
- Symptoms
- Diagnosis
- Prognosis
- Treatment
- Treatment to Achieve Remission
- Treatment During Remission
- Treatment After Relapse
- Home Management
Description
An in-depth report on the causes, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of leukemia.Alternative Names
Acute lymphoblastic (or lymphocytic) leukemia
Risk Factors:
Age
ALL in Children. ALL is the most common type of cancer diagnosed in children. ALL accounts for about 75% of cases of childhood leukemia. Each year, about 3,600 American children and adolescents are diagnosed with ALL. ALL can strike children of all ages, but is most likely to occur when children are 2 - 4 years of age. It is slightly more common in boys than in girls.
ALL in Adults. ALL is the least common type of leukemia among adults. About 1 in 3 cases of ALL occur in adults.
Race and Ethnicity
Caucasian and Hispanic children have a higher risk for ALL than African-American children.
Hereditary Disorders
ALL does not appear to run in families. But certain inherited genetic disorders may increase risk. For example, children with Down syndrome have a 20-times greater risk of developing ALL than the general population. Other rare genetic disorders associated with increased risk include Klinefelter syndrome, Bloom syndrome, Fanconi anemia, ataxia-telangiectasia, neurofibromatosis, Shwachman syndrome, IgA deficiency, and congenital X-linked agammaglobulinemia.
Radiation and Chemical Exposure
Previous cancer treatment with high doses of radiation or chemotherapy can increase the risk for developing ALL. Prenatal exposure to x-rays may also increase risk in children. Lower levels of radiation (living near power lines, video screen emissions, small appliances, cell phones) are unlikely to pose any cancer risk.
Resources
- www.leukemia-lymphoma.org -- Leukemia and Lymphoma Society
- www.cancer.org -- American Cancer Society
- www.cancer.gov -- National Cancer Institute
- www.marrow.org -- National Marrow Donor Program
- www.asco.org -- American Society of Clinical Oncology
- www.cancer.net -- Cancer.Net
- www.candlelighters.org -- Candlelighters Childhood Cancer Foundation
References
Belson M, Kingsley B, Holmes A. Risk factors for acute leukemia in children: a review. Environ Health Perspect. 2007 Jan;115(1):138-45.
Campbell LK, Scaduto M, Sharp W, et al. A meta-analysis of the neurocognitive sequelae of treatment for childhood acute lymphocytic leukemia. Pediatr Blood Cancer. 2007 Jul;49(1):65-73.
Campana D and Pui CH. Childhood Leukemia. In: Abeloff MD, Armitage JO, Niederhuber JE, Kastan MB, McKena WG, eds. Clinical Oncology. 4th ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Elsevier Churchill Livingstone; 2008:chap 101.
Hijiya N, Hudson MM, Lensing S, et al. Cumulative incidence of secondary neoplasms as a first event after childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia. JAMA. 2007 Mar 21;297(11):1207-15.
Peterson CC, Johnson CE, Ramirez LY, Huestis S, Pai AL, Demaree HA, et al. A meta-analysis of the neuropsychological sequelae of chemotherapy-only treatment for pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Pediatr Blood Cancer. 2008 Jul;51(1):99-104.
Pui CH, Robison LL, Look AT. Acute lymphoblastic leukaemia. Lancet. 2008 Mar 22;371(9617):1030-43.
Ribera JM, Ortega JJ, Oriol A, et al. Comparison of intensive chemotherapy, allogeneic, or autologous stem-cell transplantation as postremission treatment for children with very high risk acute lymphoblastic leukemia: PETHEMA ALL-93 Trial. J Clin Oncol. 2007 Jan 1;25(1):16-24.
Thomas X, Dombret H. Treatment of Philadelphia chromosome-positive adult acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Leuk Lymphoma. 2008 Jul;49(7):1246-54.
Thomas X, Le QH. Central nervous system involvement in adult acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Hematology. 2008 Oct;13(5):293-302.
Trigg ME, Sather HN, Reaman GH, Tubergen DG, Steinherz PG, Gaynon PS, et al. Ten-year survival of children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia: a report from the Children's Oncology Group. Leuk Lymphoma. 2008 Jun;49(6):1142-54.
Waber DP, Turek J, Catania L, et al. Neuropsychological outcomes from a randomized trial of triple intrathecal chemotherapy compared with 18 Gy cranial radiation as CNS treatment in acute lymphoblastic leukemia: findings from Dana-Farber Cancer Institute ALL Consortium Protocol 95-01. J Clin Oncol. 2007 Nov 1;25(31):4914-21.
Yang JJ, Cheng C, Yang W, Pei D, Cao X, Fan Y, et al. Genome-wide interrogation of germline genetic variation associated with treatment response in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia. JAMA. 2009 Jan 28;301(4):393-403.
- Reviewed last on: 3/5/2009
- Harvey Simon, MD, Editor-in-Chief, Associate Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School; Physician, Massachusetts General Hospital. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.
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