Leukemia - Science Project

The stem cells used to create blood stem cells are found in bone marrow. these divide into two different types of blood stem cells, Myeloids and lymphoids. these in turn divide into different blood cells like, platelets, white blood cells and red blood cells.

11.4% of people diagnosed with leukemia are under the age of 20.

3.3% of people diagnosed with leukemia will die that year.

The Different Systems Leukemia Affects

The muscles in the body all need oxygen and nutrients to function properly and enable the body to move. Red blood cells are responsible for transporting these to the muscles.

The blood is responsible for providing the brain and nerve cells with nutrients and oxygen which then enables them to communicate with the brain providing information on the external and internal environment.

Chemotherapy nay be given as pills or by injection. Chemotherapy drugs interfere with the ability of cancer cells to grow and spread, but they also damage healthy cells. Although healthy cells can recover over time, you may experience side effects from your treatment likenausea,vomiting,loss of appetite, fatigue, hair loss, and an increased risk of infection.

• unexplained weight loss
• sore throat
• gerneral discomfort
• swollen gums
• headaches

• Paleness or pallor
• Easy bleeding or bruising
• Loss of appetite
• Tiny red spots (called petechiae) under the skin
• Bone or joint pain.

• Painless lumps in the neck, underarm, stomach, or groin
• swelling of the lymph nodes

• pain or feeling of fullness below the ribsvomitingvision problems
• drenching night sweats

SIDE EFFECTS OF TREATMENT

Treatment

There are seven different treatment paths you could choose to take:

• Chemotherapy
• Stem cell transplant
• Radiation therapy
• Biological therapy
• Targeted therapy
• Watchful waiting
• Surgery

Chemotherapy

Stem Cell Transplant

Stem cells will be taken from you or from a donor whose bone marrow is a close match to your own. Soon after chemotherapy treatment, the stem cells are put back into your blood, within a few weeks, the new stem cells will start to make blood cells.

What is Leukemia?

Biological Therapy

Radiation

Radiation Therapy

• exhaustion
• diarrhea
• red and tender skin

Causes of Leukemia

since 1985, the morality rates of childhood cancer has dramatically declined from 40 to 20 per million children

According to the Canadian Cancer Statistics 2008, more children with cancer are surviving

approximately 850 Canadian children develop cancer each year between birth and the age of fourteen

The most common childhood cancer is leukemia with 33% of new cases

Biological therapy uses your immune system to fight cancer or to help control side effects of other cancer treatments. Natural body substances or drugs made from natural body substances are used to boost the body's own defenses against illness.There are two forms of biological therapy used to treat leukemia; monoclonal antibodies and interferon alfa.

Cytogenetic Tests

also known as chromosone analysis is done on the bone marrow to look for changes in the chromosones in the cell. these tests are used to determine the type of leukemia through the genetic abnormalities in the chromosones

Surgery

Impact of Leukemia on Society

Blood Tests

blood is taken and examined to see how the cells are in number and appearance. this can also show how well other organs such as your kidney or liver are working. Blood tests can determine whether you have leukemia or not.

Biological

there is no single cause for leukemia, however there are many factors that increase the risk of developing it, such as:

• being old
• previous chemotherapy or radiation treatment
• exposure to radiation or chemicals
• smoking
• having a genetic disorder (eg. Down Syndrome) or abnormality
• family history
• being male (studies show that males are more likely to develop this type of cancer)

Bibliography/References

www.medicinenet.com/leukemia

www.cancer.ca

www.google.ca/images

www.howstuffworks.com/mri.htm

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qje0fG_JHL

www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZvwuAaqATvM

www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/142595.php

wwww.bodyandhealth.canada.com/channel_condition_info_details.

www.llscanada.org/diseaseinformation/leukemia/

In external beam radiation therapy, a large machine is used to carefully aim a beam of radiation. Radiation may be used for some types of leukemia to treat the disease or prevent it from spreading. The radiation damages the cells in the path of the beam-normal cells as well as cancer cells. Radiation destroys the bone marrow cells, forcing them to 'start again' and form new fully functioning stem cells and therefore, blood cells.

Created by Dr Raymond Damadian, the MRI machine is a way to noninvasively scan the body using magnets. you are lying down on a moving table that is surrounded by a circular machine that makes a lot of noise.

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)

the benefits of this medical technology is the many views you can get (cross sectional) of a selected area unlike in an X-Ray where it is just a flat view. one of the drawbacks of this piece of medical technology was with the first prototype, it was made out of magnets and antenna wires, no one wanted to be the first test subject. when the inventor volunteered, they found out he was too big to be scanned properly

In some cases:

• severe skin rash breathing problems low blood pressure

• chills
• fever
• muscle aches
• weakness
• nausea

Imaging Studies

a team of health care professionals preform look at the tissues, organs and bones with X-rays, MRIs, ultrasounds and CT scans. these can help them get an idea of where the cancer is and what it is effecting in your body.

• pain
• bleeding
• infection

(Side effects usually disappear once treatment is finished.)

Biopsy

a definite diagnosis of the leukemia where cells are removed from the bone marrow and studied to see if there are any leukemia cells. if there are they are studied further to see the rate in which they divide

there are two ways to get bone marrow samples;

bone marrow aspiration: a way of removing samples of bone marrow

bone marrow biopsy: a way of removing a sample of bone marrow and bone.

(these side effects are temporary, and can usually be controlled.)

Lumbar Puncture

used when the disease has spread to the nervous system. a needle is inserted between two vertebrae and removes some cerebrospinal fluid to check for cancerous cells

Diagnosing Leukemia

A PROJECT DONE BY:

KAYLA SCHUMACKER

AND

ELISSA KEENLEYSIDE

There are several different types of leukemia . The types of leukemia are first divided according to type of stem cell they developed from:

• Myelogenous leukemias develop from abnormal myeloid cells.
• Lymphocytic leukemias develop from abnormal lymphoid cells

After Treatment

Follow-up care helps you and your healthcare team monitor your progress and recovery. Blood samples will be taken regularly during and after treatment to check levels of your white and red blood cells. When your white blood cell count is low, you will need to protect yourself from infections, You may be given antibiotics and other drugs to help prevent infections, Some people with leukemia experience low energy and fatigue,

Leukemia is cancer of the organs that make blood, bone marrow, and the lymph system. Leukemia is a cancer that starts in the stem cells of the bone marrow. Leukemia develops when the blood stem cells in the bone marrow make abnormal blood cells.These abnormal cells are called leukemia cells.;this disease causes white blood cells to reproduce uncontrollably which takes up space in the bloodstream which in turn does not leave enough room for healthy white blood cells, red blood cells, and platelets. These abnormal cells are called leukemia cells.

Watchful Waiting

Targeted Therapy

The Muscloskeletal System.

The Nervous System

Leukemia

The Circulatory System

Someone with Leukemia has an abnormal amount of white blood cells; with white blood cells greatly outnumbering red blood cells. Which results in less red blood cells and therefore the muscles are getting an insufficient amount of oxygen and nutrients. This can result in fatigue, and weakness.

The circulatory system is responsible for transporting nutrients and oxygen around the body to the organs and organ systems.

Targeted therapies use drugs that attack specific types of cancer cells without damaging healthy cells. Cancer growth inhibitors are a type of targeted therapy. They interfere with cancer cell's ability to grow and divide.

Surgery

Watchful waiting is a treatment option that may be offered to people with chronic lymphocytic leukemia who have no symptoms. Watchful waiting means your healthcare team will watch the leukemia closely. You will visit your doctor regularly for a physical examination. Other tests may be done from time to time. Active treatment, such as chemotherapy or radiation, may be considered if signs of leukemia appear or change. Once the symptoms are controlled, you and your doctor may decide to return to a watchful waiting program.

The Brain; which has now not received enough oxygen and nutrients, is not receiving information for the nerves properly. This can result in fatigue and loss of appetite.

Someone with leukemia has a mutated white blood cell that goes through mitosis at an alarming rate. The bone marrow mistakenly lets the cancerous white blood cells into the system without creating an equal amount of red blood cells. The white blood cells are no longer able to fight infection and spread easily throughout the body. Because of the shortage in red blood cells not enough oxygen and nutrients is transported to the organ systems.

surgery is rarely used to treat chronic leukemia, but some people with chronic leukemia will need to have their spleen removed.In chronic leukemia, the spleen may become enlarged. An enlarged speen can cause discomfort and pain. It also destroys red blood cells and platelets, causing anemia and bleeding, If chemotherapy or radiation doesn't shrink the spleen, then it may be removed by surgery.

The types of leukemia are further grouped according to how quickly the leukemia grows and develops.

• Acute leukemia - start suddenly, developing within days or weeks. The number of leukemia cells in the blood can rise very fast and the blood cannot do its job. Acute leukemia get worse quickly and need to be treated right away
• Chronic leukemia- develop slowly over months or years, and may not cause any symptoms early in the disease. Symptoms start to appear as the number of leukemia cells in the blood or bone marrow increases.

PRGRESSION OF SYMPTOMS

• Fever
• Fatigue
• Frequent infections

Early Symptoms

Late Symptoms