Pilots and Leukemia (blood cancer, leukemia, white blood) is a cancer disease that is deadly and does not guarantee a long life. Patients and their relatives are interested in how long they live with leukemia, how to improve the quality of life during the disease. In this case, everything depends on individual indicators and the influence of certain factors.
Blood leukemia
How many people live with leukemia: white blood cell life expectancy, leukemia prognosis, blood, people
Leukemia (blood cancer, leukemia, white blood) is a disease of Oncology that is deadly and does not guarantee a long life. Patients and their relatives are interested in how long they live with leukemia, how to improve the quality of life during the disease. In this case, everything depends on individual indicators and the influence of certain factors.
Why does the patient’s quality of life deteriorate
With leukemia, the number of lymphocytes and white blood cells that are not able to provide immune protection increases sharply. There is an oxygen starvation of cells due to a lack of red blood cells. Getting together with the blood flow to the internal organs, cancer cells increase the clinical manifestations:
- the mechanism of peripheral blood supply is transformed;
- the blood becomes viscous;
- the pancreas, liver, spleen, and lymph nodes are enlarged;
- secondary insufficiency of internal organs develops.
- As a result, the patient’s health worsens, migraines appear, vision drops, and appetite disappears. Severe fatigue is accompanied by high temperature, fever, and nosebleeds. The body is covered with bruises, rashes, and bruises. There are swelling, coughing, joint pain.
The quality of life of a person with leukemia worsens due to the following factors that lead to the progression of the disease:
- alcohol, Smoking and other bad habits;
- products containing preservatives;
- exposure to radiation, carcinogenic substances, oncogenic viruses;
- heredity or congenital disease.
How long can you live
In patients with leukemia, the life forecast for each individual is different — on average from 5 to 10 years. Remission may last longer. This depends on the type of blood cancer, its stage, and the positive response to treatment. Approximately 40% of adults are cured.
There are several factors that determine the prognosis of life in leukemia.
Age. The elderly have reduced immunity, so the life expectancy of such a patient is small. The chances of persistent remission and even recovery are high in children and young people.
Stage of development. First (A): people live 10 years or more; the blood composition is little changed; you can achieve a full recovery by contacting a doctor in time. Second (C): patients can live from 5 to 8 years; there is a proliferation of cancer cells in the blood; the adoption of medical measures guarantees 70-80% survival rate. The third (C) is comparable to the fourth level of cancer development, when the entire body is affected by metastases; the survival period is 1-3 years.
Chronic or acute form of the disease. With chronic leukemia, the patient’s life span is much longer, since the presence of Mature and immature cells slows down the development of the disease. Acute leukemia progresses quickly and is difficult to treat. Blood cancer differs in that both of these forms are independent diseases and do not flow into one another.
In the acute form
This type of leukemia, if left untreated, will lead to death in a few months. Blasts (immature cells) multiply rapidly. After laboratory tests, the last stage of leukemia is diagnosed. Treatment is almost ineffective, especially for those over 70.
The chances increase if the type of leukemia is lymphoblastic, and treatment is started in a timely manner. Between 80% and 90% of patients recover. If the type of leukemia is myeloblastic-40-50%. This is the most severe form of blood cancer.
In acute myeloblastic blood disease
Characteristic of this form of leukemia is the process of formation of myeloblasts by the spinal cord, which are unhealthy for the entire body. In the bone marrow, the myeloid sprout that generates white blood cells is affected.
They actively reproduce in the circulatory system. These malignant cells suppress the emergence of healthy ones, resulting in infection of the entire body.
The main symptoms are fever above normal and painful sensations in the bones.
Myeloblastic blood damage most often affects children. Timely treatment allows you to achieve remission. The probability of healing is low if the blood pathology is triggered. With stem cell transplantation, the hope for recovery increases.
In the chronic form
Chronic leukemia proceeds slowly, since not only blasts are present in the bloodstream, but also Mature cells.
With chronic leukemia, the patient can live for a long time, up to 20 years. The survival rate is high — up to 95%. Using modern therapy, it is possible to achieve stable remission, especially in women. In old age, chemotherapy helps 75% of people survive.
Disease prognosis
Acute leukemia has a relatively poor prognosis. The probability of recovery depends on the following factors:
patient’s age;
presence of chronic diseases;
timeliness of therapy and many others.
On average, children live from eight months to five years after being diagnosed with acute leukemia. However, cases of complete recovery are not excluded.
Even if a child has passed the five-year mark, they still need regular medical examinations
It is important for him to organize the appropriate conditions. First of all, you must adhere to the following rules:
- to reduce the level of physical activity;
- to refuse to preventive vaccinations;
- reduce the time spent in the sun;
- observe the sleep and nutrition regime;
- avoid nervous overstrain.
regularly take control tests.
The following factors affect the quality of the forecast:
- the presence of additional infections — when the immune system is reduced, secondary infections develop quite quickly in the body. They affect different organs and systems. The presence of infection is a serious danger. As a result of secondary infection, the child’s health deteriorates sharply, and complications develop;
- the presence of metastases — cancer cells, spreading through the body, affect other organs and systems. The presence of metastases is a serious complication. The treatment plan is completely changed;
- the body’s response to medications — if the child tolerates treatment well, then his chances of remission increase significantly. Some chronic or congenital diseases can reduce the effectiveness of therapy.
- In the absence of the necessary treatment, the probability of death in children is 100%. Blasts in acute form multiply rapidly, and the life span does not exceed a couple of months. In the case of timely chemotherapy, 50-80% of babies survive the five-year milestone. Talk about a complete recovery is possible only in the case that relapses do not occur in the next 6-7 years. Acute leukemia, diagnosed in children aged two years and older, is easier to treat.
How to prolong life in acute form of leukemia
With the development of the oncological process, all systems of the body suffer. Starting treatment on time and achieving remission does not give a 100% guarantee that the cancer will not return.
Special attention is paid to the body for 2 years after the last chemotherapy. If the disease does not return for another 3 years, the patient has every chance to get rid of white blood forever.
Increases the survival rate of bone marrow transplantation. The difficulty is that it is difficult to find a suitable donor. There are examples when parents gave birth to a second child as a lifetime donor for the first, because the biological material of siblings is almost always suitable for a sick person. The procedure is expensive, so most patients refuse the operation.
Psychological support of relatives is important for a cancer patient during treatment. In severe depressive States, it is recommended to consult a psychologist. To overcome the disease, you need to believe in yourself. Patients with an optimistic mood and a desire to live go into remission faster than others.