Leukaemia Flashcards
What is leukaemia?
cancer of the blood and or bone marrow
What is the difference between leukaemia and lymphoma?
leukaemia is predominantly in the blood and bone marrow where as lymphoma is predominantly in the lymph tissue - there is some overlap and the cell types can be identical
What are the predisposing factors for leukaemia?
for most patients it is unknown but there is a contribution from environmental factors such as radiation, other myeloid diseases and haemopoeitic disorders and there is a genetic component with a higher incidence in Down’s syndrome patients and patients with a sibling with acute leukaemia
What is the pathogenesis of leukaemia?
There is a somatic mutation in a multipotential primitive cell or sometimes a more differentiated progenitor cell - the mutation is often a chromosomal translocation- fusion encodes for a fusion protein which disrupts the normal cell pathway and predisposes to malignancy
What is the origin of all blood cells?
the haemopoetic stem cell
What does a myeloblast differentiate into?
neutrophils, eosinophils, basophils, macrophage
What does a lymphoblast differentiate into?
B and T lymphocytes and NK cells
What does the haemopoeitic stem cell differentiate into?
the common myeloid progenitor and the common lymphoid progenitor
What does the common myeloid progenitor differentiate into?
megakaryoblast, erythroblast, myeloblast
What is acute leukaemia?
where the mutation is in an early progenitor cell (a blast) which results in a proliferation of immature cells and compromises marrow function - rapid clinical course and fatal if untreated
What is chronic leukaemia?
accumulation of maturer blood cells - gradually compromises marrow function
What are the classifications of leukaemia?
lymphoblastic, myeloblastic or other
What are the common symptoms of leukaemia?
weight loss, fever, frequent infections, shortness of breath, muscular weakness, pain or tenderness in bones or joints, fatigue, loss of appetite, enlarged lymph nodes, enlarged spleen and or liver, night sweats, easy bruising, purpuric spots
What is the mechanism of action of imatinib?
•Inhibits BCR-ABL autophosphorylation & phosphorylation•Induces apoptosis•Inhibits proliferation
What is the treatment for leukaemia?
chemotherapy, transplantion, targeted chemotherapy, supportive treatment
