Leukemia is one condition that doesn’t cure but rather goes into remission. Which is why, if you have been treated for leukemia once in your life, there is an urgent need to keep monitoring yourself for leukemia relapse symptoms. What are these symptoms? Read this article and find out!
The term leukemia reminds us of the term ‘leukocytes’, right? Wondering what are leukocytes? They are a specific kind of white blood cells in the body that are used to fight infections from the outside threats. A person is known to be suffering from leukemia when there is an abnormal production of immature or abnormal white blood cells in the bone marrow. Our bone marrow is responsible for the production of healthy blood cells. These include the white blood cells which are responsible for fighting against infection, the red blood cells which are responsible for carrying oxygen all over the body, and the platelets, which are responsible for the formation of blood clots.
Leukemia leads to formation of abnormal and immature white blood cells in the bone marrow, which in turn hampers the production of the aforementioned healthy blood cells thereby causing life-threatening situations. The treatment depends upon the type of leukemia one is suffering from, and even if the treatment is taken, there are chances that the condition may relapse, which is why doctors prefer using the term ‘remission’ instead of ‘cure’.
Leukemia Relapse in Children and Adults: Types and Symptoms
Leukemia is categorized as either ‘acute’, or ‘chronic’ in nature. The condition where there is abnormal growth of white blood cells or ‘leukemia cells’ at a rapid pace and they are not able to perform any function of the normal white blood cells, is known as acute leukemia. On the other hand, we have chronic leukemia, wherein the growth of immature white blood cells is very slow, most of the time, without any significant signs and symptoms.
In this case, the leukemia cells are able to perform the functions of normal white blood cells, but as the growth of leukemia cells increase in the bone marrow, it ceases to perform the functions of WBCs in a normal way, thereby making the condition of the patient worse. Mentioned below are the different types of leukemia and the relapse symptoms, which are pretty much the same as the symptoms that occur for the first time. Have a look!
Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL)
Also known as ‘chronic lymphoblastic leukemia’, this type of leukemia generally affects adults aged more than 55 years. In this case, there is a slow growth of mature white blood cells known as the B lymphocytes in the bone marrow. These cancerous cells can also affect the blood, lymph nodes and some of the vital organs of the body like liver and spleen. Mentioned below are the symptoms of CLL relapse.
- Fever
- Unexpected weight loss
- Recurring infections
- Too much of sweating
- Increase in the size of lymph nodes
- Enlarged liver or spleen
- Fatigue
- Appetite loss
- Night sweats
- Pain in the lymph nodes, spleen and liver
Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia (ALL)
You would be surprised to know that this type of leukemia accounts for 80% of leukemia cases in children, shocking, isn’t it? The rest 20% accounts for adults. In this condition, there is a rapid production of immature white blood cells known as the lymphocytes which replaces the normal white blood cells thereby causing the following symptoms.
- Fever
- Weight loss
- Appetite loss
- Night sweats
- Fatigue and weakness
- Bleeding problems like bleeding of the gums, nose, skin and menstrual irregularities
- The glands of the neck, groin, underarms tend to swell and pain
- Pain below the ribs with or without the feeling of being satiated
- Red spots on the skin, known as petechiae, which are as small as the tip of a pin.
Chronic Myeloid Leukemia (CML)
The other terminology for this type of leukemia is ‘chronic granulocytic leukemia’ or ‘chronic myelogenous leukemia’. It is generally found among the middle aged adults and children as well. When a person suffers from CML, the body tends to produce a huge number of white blood cells, both immature and mature in nature. The white blood cells produced are known as myelocytes. This condition has 3 phases. The chronic phase wherein there are no signs and symptoms, the accelerated phase, wherein the cells grow very quickly and the blast crisis phase wherein severe symptoms may occur. The relapse symptoms of CML are as follows.
- Fever
- Pain in the bones
- Bruising and bleeding problems
- Fatigue and weakness
- Petechiae
- Sweating
- Swollen spleen, thereby causing pressure under the left rib cage
Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML)
This is considered to be one of the most common types of leukemia among adults and it rarely affects children. In fact, studies show that AML is more prone to occur in men as compared to women. When a person suffers from AML, the body tends to produce a large amount of white blood cells known as myelocytes. These cells are produced in an abnormal amount and therefore end up replacing the healthy blood cells and cause the following symptoms.
- Fever
- Weight loss
- Fatigue
- Pain in the bone with or without tenderness
- Breathing difficulty
- Bruising
- Lesions or rashes on the skin
- Bleeding from the gums, nose and heavy menstrual periods.
So these were the well-known symptoms of leukemia relapse, based on the types of leukemia that one is suffering from. If you noticed, most of the symptoms in each kind of leukemia are more or less the same. Therefore, if you have been through the leukemia treatment like radiation and chemotherapy and have completed it successfully, you still need to monitor these symptoms and get in touch with your health care specialist as soon as possible so that the necessary treatment can be started for remission. Remember I said, leukemia doesn’t cure, but goes into remission.
