Harriet and her husband Matthew (41) shared the symptoms they experienced until their child was diagnosed with leukemia through the British daily newspaper The Sun. Vinnie showed several changes several months before the diagnosis. The first was a loss of appetite, followed by changes in sleep patterns. Harriet said, "The child used to wake up during the night, but in the past few months, he slept through the night," and "He hardly ate anything, and cold symptoms persisted for nearly three months."
Then, upon noticing red spots on the skin, the couple took their child to the hospital and requested a blood test, and Bini was diagnosed with leukemia in August 2023.
The doctor said that the child's platelet count was far below the normal level and that 65% of the cells in the body were leukemia cells. Following this, Binnie immediately began chemotherapy. Last Christmas, she experienced an anaphylactic shock from one of the medications, narrowly avoiding a dangerous crisis, but since April of this year, she has been undergoing maintenance chemotherapy. The treatment is scheduled to end in October 2025. Harriet, thinking about the Christmas she couldn't properly spend last year, is planning a happy and wonderful Christmas for her child this year.
Blood cancer leukemia caused by blood cells transforming into cancer cells and proliferating
Leukemia is a blood cancer that occurs when normal blood cells in the bone marrow, our hematopoietic organ, transform into cancer cells and proliferate due to certain causes. Leukemia cells proliferate infinitely, interfering with the production of normal white blood cells, red blood cells, and platelets, thereby reducing the levels of normal blood cells.
The exact cause of leukemia has not yet been identified, but it is known that genetic predisposition, viral infections, smoking, exposure to electric fields and radiation, occupational exposure to chemicals, and medications such as chemotherapy drugs can be contributing factors.
Leukemia patients commonly experience anemia, bleeding, and infections due to a decrease in normal blood cells. When immune function is impaired, systemic symptoms such as fever, weakness, fatigue, and weight loss may occur. If organs are affected, symptoms include bone pain, gum swelling, liver enlargement, and spleen enlargement. In cases involving the central nervous system, symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, seizures, and cranial nerve paralysis may appear.
Blood cancer cannot be treated with surgical procedures, and the standard treatment is chemotherapy using anticancer drugs. In cases like the child in the story, who has acute leukemia, remission-inducing chemotherapy is first administered to kill leukemia cells in the bone marrow. After a recovery period, a bone marrow test is performed; if leukemia cells are less than 5% and normal blood counts are observed, it is considered complete remission.
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Leukemia these days is not just something that affects children.
My aunt also has acute leukemia.
You have worked very hard.
You are still paying a lot of attention to immune system management.