Leukemia is cancer that occurs in human blood cells. To find out about the leukemia, we must recognize first blood cells of normal and what happens if exposed to leukemia. Human blood consists of liquid called blood plasma, and three groups of blood cells. Groups of blood cells were differentiated into red blood cells, white blood cells, and pieces of blood.
White blood cells or leukocytes serves to protect the body against infection or other disease attack. Red blood cells or erythrocytes serves to carry oxygen from the lungs to all body tissues, and carry carbon dioxide from body tissues back to the lungs. The fragments of blood or platelets is important in blood clotting process.
When leukemia occurs, the body produces blood cells are abnormal and in large numbers. In leukemia, abnormal blood cells are white blood cell group. Blood cells which develop leukemia will be very different from normal blood cells, and unable to function like normal blood cells.
The cause of leukemia so far not known. However much research done to solve this problem. Several studies have shown that leukemia is more frequently attacked the men than women, and also in the group of whites compared with blacks. But until now has not known why it happens.
Some of the things alleged to be causes of leukemia such as the body often exposed to certain chemicals, radiation, and drugs (such as in cancer treatment), or because of abnormal chromosomes (as in Down syndrome). These materials can cause mutations and ultimately will affect the growth or white blood cell division process.
Symptoms of leukemia is usually characterized by anemia. Infection will be easy or often occurs because white blood cells can not function properly, pain or pain in the bones, and bleeding that often occurs because the blood is difficult to freeze. If not treated, it will lead to acute leukemia and eventually can cause death.
Treatment of leukemia may include chemotherapy with anticancer drugs, radiation therapy, blood platelets and plasma, and bone marrow transplantation.
source: info-sehat.com
Tues Cause Leukemia Discovered
The team found that both twins had abnormal praleukemia stem cells in their blood. The cell was able to “sleep” in the bone marrow or stem cells develop into leukemia. These results are confirmed by experiments using human umbilical cord cells.
“This research means we can test whether the treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukemia in children can be attributed to the disappearance and the development of leukemia stem cells,” said Professor Tariq Enver of Molecular Haematology Unit at Oxford University, who led the research. “Starting now, relief efforts can be focused on efforts aimed praleukemia stem cells and cancer stem cells with existing drugs, or are we going to develop.”
Relief efforts that focused, according to Tariq, can avoid the side effects of cancer chemotherapy treatment of painful and sometimes even endanger the patient’s body condition. It is very important because it proved, Olivia, one of the twins who develop leukemia, suffered blindness in one eye due to an infection that can not fight his body during chemotherapy.
Scientists have tracked the possibility of pre-cancerous stem cells was a result of abnormal fusion of two genes that occurs during pregnancy the mother. This fusion produces a hybrid protein, a “mistake” that occurred at random genetic and causes the cell to be infected with leukemia. Genes taken from the twins and then transplanted into laboratory mice that confirm the existence of a direct relationship between genetic malfunctions of these stem cells and leukemia.
UK Donors who fund research, the Leukemia Research and the Medical Research Council, and Great Ormond Street Hospital stated very excited about the discovery and hope that continued research into efforts to prevent and treat disease.

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