Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia
Everyone carries cancer cells throughout their body. The human body is programmed to fight off these cancer cells with natural immune defenses. For some, cancer is inevitable and can be brought upon in many different ways. One of the top 10 most common cancers is leukemia (Leukemia, p.1). While all leukemia is cancer of the blood cells, it can come in many different forms such as Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia, Acute Myelogenous Leukemia, Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia and Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia. The difference between acute and chronic leukemia is that acute is fast growing while chronic is slow. “Acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) is the most prevalent cancer in children and accounts for 80% of childhood leukemia” the various signs and symptoms can be treated in different ways (Siviero-Miachon, 2013, p.1).
Case Study Molly, a twelve-year-old Caucasian female girl is brought into the local emergency room by her mother due to constant fatigue and a ghost like appearance. Along with these symptoms Molly’s mother goes on to explain how she has been experiencing severe night sweats for the past couple days. Molly also has been experiencing a high fever, however the mother associated this with the common …show more content…
Fever is due to the leukemia cell infestation in the bone marrow and blood stream. Regular blood cells created from hematopoiesis are able to aid the body in fighting off infections, but with the leukemia cells this is not the case. They are incapable off fighting off infections, which is why fever is usually present. Since the hematopoiesis is off red blood cell levels are lower than usual. Red blood cells are what the human body uses to receive oxygen and energy. Therefore, fatigue and shortness of breath are also commonly seen in patients because they do not have the right amount of red blood cells to supply them with energy and oxygen (Hinds, 2007, p.
Everyone carries cancer cells throughout their body. The human body is programmed to fight off these cancer cells with natural immune defenses. For some, cancer is inevitable and can be brought upon in many different ways. One of the top 10 most common cancers is leukemia (Leukemia, p.1). While all leukemia is cancer of the blood cells, it can come in many different forms such as Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia, Acute Myelogenous Leukemia, Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia and Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia. The difference between acute and chronic leukemia is that acute is fast growing while chronic is slow. “Acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) is the most prevalent cancer in children and accounts for 80% of childhood leukemia” the various signs and symptoms can be treated in different ways (Siviero-Miachon, 2013, p.1).
Case Study Molly, a twelve-year-old Caucasian female girl is brought into the local emergency room by her mother due to constant fatigue and a ghost like appearance. Along with these symptoms Molly’s mother goes on to explain how she has been experiencing severe night sweats for the past couple days. Molly also has been experiencing a high fever, however the mother associated this with the common …show more content…
Fever is due to the leukemia cell infestation in the bone marrow and blood stream. Regular blood cells created from hematopoiesis are able to aid the body in fighting off infections, but with the leukemia cells this is not the case. They are incapable off fighting off infections, which is why fever is usually present. Since the hematopoiesis is off red blood cell levels are lower than usual. Red blood cells are what the human body uses to receive oxygen and energy. Therefore, fatigue and shortness of breath are also commonly seen in patients because they do not have the right amount of red blood cells to supply them with energy and oxygen (Hinds, 2007, p.