Haematology Flashcards
Define Leukemia.
Malignant neoplastic monoclonal proliferation of haematopoietic (stem) blood cells. When abnormal blood cells/precusors accumulate in the bone marrow.
State the 4 types of Leukemia.
Acute lymphoid leukemia. Acute myeloid leukemia. Chronic lymphoid leukemia. Chronic myeloid leukemia.
Give 2 examples of neoplastic infiltration.
Bone marrow (bone pain). Thymus (palpable mass, airway compensation). Liver and spleen (hepatosplenomegaly). Lymph nodes (lymphadenopathy). Meningeal infiltration (headaches, vomiting, nerve palsies, nuchal rigidity).
State what a hematopoietic stem cell differentiates into.
Myeloblasts. Lymphoblasts.
State what a myeloblast differentiates into.
Erythrocyte. Thrombocyte. Monocyte. Granulocyte.
State what a lymphoblast differentiates into.
Pre-B Cell - B lymphocyte. Pre-T Cell - T lymphocyte.
State what a granulocyte differentiates into.
Neutrophil. Basophil. Eosinophil.
State what a lymphoblast differentiates into.
B lymphocyte. NK cell. T lymphocyte.
State what acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL).
Malignancy of lymphoid cells affecting B or T lymphocyte cell lineages in bone marrow. Prevents maturation and promotes uncontrolled proliferation of immature blast cells.
State the 2 types of ALL.
B cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia. T cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia.
State a cause of B cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia.
Translocations - t(12,21); t(9,22)
State what a T cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia.
Pre-T cells in the thymus. Associated with NOTCH1 mutation.
State a risk factor for Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia.
Common with Young Children. Ionizing radiation - during pregnancy. Down syndrome (after age of 5)
State a sign of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL).
1) Abrupt onset.
2) Loss of normal marrow function (anaemia - fatigue, shortness of breath, pallor/thrombocytopenia - bruising, petechiae (round spots on the skin), neutropenia - bacterial infections (fever, pneumonia, sepsis).
3) Infiltration of organs - hepatomegaly/splenomegaly, lymphadenopathy/mediastinal mass (growth in area of chest that separates lungs)
4) CNS manifestations - headaches, nausea, nerve palsy
State how acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is diagnosed.
1) Blood count (increased lymphocytes, increased white blood cells)
2) Bone marrow smear - lymphoblasts (small cells) - glycogen granules
3) Immunophenotyping:
B cells - express tumour markers (CD10, CD19, CD20)
T cells - express tumour markers (CD1, CD2, CD5, CD7, CDH)
4) Karotyping
5) Chest X ray/CT scan - mediastinal and abdominal lymphadenopathy
6) Lumbar puncture - look for CNS involvement
State a treatment for acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL).
1) Support - blood transfusion, IV fluids, allipurinol (prevent tumour lysis syndrome).
2) Chemotherapy - anthracycline, vincristine, dexamethasone, asparaginase, methotrexate, cyclophosphamide, cytarabine.
3) Allogeneic haemopoietic stem cell transplant
State a side effect of chemotherapy.
Tumour lysis syndrome.
Define a tumour lysis syndrome.
Rapid release of cellular components into circulation as a result of massive destruction of rapidly proliferating malignant cells.
State some risk factors for tumour lysis syndrome.
Pre-existing renal failure. Drugs that increase urate levels. High tumour proliferation rate.
Define a treatment for a tumour lysis syndrome.
Hydration. Allopurinol. Monitoring with blood tests. Treat hyperkalaemia. May need dialysis.
Define an Acute Myeloid Leukaemia (AML).
Neoplastic proliferation of myelogenous stem cells (myeloblasts) in bone marrow.
State a type of Acute Myeloid Leukaemia (AML).
Acute promyelocytic leukemia (associated with a translocation t(15, 17) - disruption of retinoic acid receptor. Acute monocytic leukemia. Acute megakaryocytic leukemia.
Define hyperviscosity.
If white cell count > 100x10^9/L, white blood cell thrombi may form in the brain, lung and heart (leukostasis).
State a problem associated with hyperviscosity
Cerebral problem - headache, blurred vision, claudication. Cardiovascular problems - heart failure. Bleeding - skin, retina, post injury. Pulmonary congestion - shortness of breath. Do not transfuse red cells (increase viscosity).
State the different types of Acute Myeloid Leukaemia (AML).
Acute promyelocytic leukemia (granulocytes). Acute myelomonocytic leukemia. Acute monocytic leukemia (monocytes). Acute erythroid leukemia (red blood cells). Acute megakaryoblastic leukemia (platelets).
State a risk factor for Acute Myeloid Leukaemia (AML).
Adults. Associated with myelodysplastic syndrome (immature blood cells in the bone marrow do not mature - therefore do not become healthy blood cells). Chemotherapy. Down’s syndrome.
As disease progresses, are there more or less myeloblasts?
Myeloblasts <20% initially, then >20% as disease progresses.
State a symptom of Acute Myeloid Leukaemia (AML).
Anaemia, infection and bleeding. Swelling of gums - monocytic infiltration. DIC - acute promyelotcytic leukemia (release of thromboplastin). Infiltration - hepatomegaly, splenomegaly).
State of symptom of both AML and ALL.
Fatigue. Easier bleeding. Abdominal fullness. Increased infections. Pain in the lymph nodes. Pain and tenderness in the bones. Swelling of the gums. Mass or growth in the mediastinum.
State how Acute Myeloid Leukaemia (AML) is diagnosed.
Blood count (WCC increased). Blood smear. Bone marrow smear. Immunophenotyping.
How are myeloblasts differentiated from lymphoblasts on the blood smear?
Myeloblasts have Auer Rods. Lymphoblasts have glycogen granules.
What should you expect when immunophenotyping ALL?
DNA polymerase only in lymphoblasts (TdT).
State a treatment of immunophenotyping.
Chemotherapy - daunorubicin, cytarabine. Bone marrow transplant - pluripotent haematopoietic stem cells collected from bone marrow (ciclosporin +/- methotrexate used to reduce effect of new bone marrow rejection).
Define chronic lymphocytic leukemia.
Sustained proliferation of mature B lymphocytes in bone marrow, blood, lymph nodes.
What is the most commonest leukemia?
Chronic lymphocytic leukemia.
What is the difference between acute and chronic leukemia?
Acute - cells don’t mature. Chronic - cells mature partially (therefore don’t work effectively, divide too quickly, don’t die as they should).
State a cause of chronic leukemia.
Chromosomal abnormalities - deletion, trisomy, translocation. Mutations can result in abnormal proteins affecting tyrosine kinase pathway (e.g. Bruton’s tyrosine kinase) - prevents lymphocyte maturation and cell death.
State a risk factor for Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL).
Affects older people (> 50). Men > women (2:1).
State a symptom of Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia.
Anaemia (fatigue, shortness of breath, pallor). Thrombocytopenia - bruising, petechiae (spots on skin)
Neutropenia - bacterial infections (fever, pneumonia, sepsis)
Liver and spleen - hepatosplenomegaly
Lymphadenopathy - lymph nodes swell up
Meningeal infiltration - headaches, vomiting, nerve palsies, nuchal rigidity (inability to flex neck)
State a complication of Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL).
Infection - due to hypogammaglobulinemia (reduced antibodies - to fight infection). Autoimmune hemolytic anemia and thrombocytopenia.
State how a Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL) is diagnosed.
Blood count, blood smear (lymphocytosis), smudge cells (disruption of fragile cell membranes of abnormal lymphocytes). Immunophenotyping (CD5, CD20, CD23). Surgery (lymph node biopsy - increasing small round lymphocytes infiltration).
State a treatment of Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL).
Chemotherapy drug e.g. fludarabine, rituximab, cyclophosphamide. Ibrutinib, chlorambucil, bendamustine, ofatumumab. Steroids (helps with autoimmune haemolysis). Radiotherapy (helps lymphadenopathy and splenomegaly). Stem cell transplantation.
Define Chronic Myeloid Leukemia (CML).
Monoclonal proliferation of mature granulocytes/precursors. They accumulate in bone marrow to prevent maturation. Occur between 40-60 years. Male dominance.
State a cause of Chronic Myeloid Leukemia (CLL).
Associated with Philadelphia chromosome (no. 22) - translocation from 9 to 22. Results in a BCR-ABL fusion, increasing tyrosine kinase activity and cell division.
State a sign of Chronic Myeloid Leukemia (CLL).
Fatigue/weight loss/loss of energy/fever. Bleeding (platelet dysfunction). Abdominal enlargement (splenic enlargement). Anaemia and bruising.
State a diagnosis of Chronic Myeloid Leukemia (CLL).
Blood count, blood sugar (increased granulocytes - basophils, eosinophils, neutrophils). Bone marrow biopsy (hypercellularity - cells of myeloid cell line/precursors) - fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH)/PCR.