Zusammenfassung der Ressource
leukaemia
- acute lymphoblastic leukaemia
- =80% of
leukaemia
in kids
- clinical presentation
- peaks @
2-5 years
- results from disseminated disease
& systemic ill health from infiltration
of bone marrow or other organs w/
leukaemic blast cells
- general
- malaise
- anorexia
- bone marrow infiltration
- anaemia
- pallor, lethargy
- neutropenia
- infection
- thrombocytopenia
- bruising, petechiae, nose bleeds
- bone pain
- reticulo-endothelial
infiltration
- hepatosplenomegaly
- lymphadenopathy,
superior mediastinal
obstruction (uncommon)
- other organ
infiltration (rare @
diag, more often @
relapse)
- CNS
- headaches
- vomiting
- nerve palsies
- testes
- testicular enlargement
- in most kids, ALL presents insidiously over several weeks
- in some presentation& progress is rapid
- Ix
- abnormal FBC in most
- low Hb
- thrombocytopenia
- evidence of
circulating
leukaemic
blast cells
- bone
marrow
exam
- to confirm diag
- to ID immunological &
cytogenetic
characteristics that give
prognostic info
- CXR
- to ID
mediastinal
mass
- characteristic of T cell disease
- morphological
classification
- for
ALL
&
AML
- +
immunological
phenotyping to
further
subclassify ALL
- common
subtype
(75%)
- T cell subtype (15%)
- Mx
- prognostic factors (&
also indicate intensity
of therapy)
- age
- high risk
features
- <1 year or > 10 years old
- tumour load (measured by WBC)
- high risk features
- > 50 x10^9/L
- cytogenetic/molecular genetic abnormalities in tumour cells
- high risk features
- e.g. MLL rearrangement,
t(4:11), hypodiploidy (<44
chromosomes)
- speed of
response to
initial chemo
- high risk features
- persistence of leukaemic blasts in bone marrow
- minimal residual
disease
(submicroscopic
levels of leukaemia
detected by PCR)
- high risk feature
- high
- remission induction
- before Rx
anaemia may
need correcting
- blood transfusion
- minimise
risk of
bleeding
- platelet
transfusion
- treat
infection
- additional
hydration &
allopurinol (or
urate oxidase
when WCC high
& risk greater)
- to protect renal
function vs effects of
rapid cell lysis
- remission implies
eradication of leukaemic
blasts & restoration of
normal marrow function
- 4
weeks
of
combo
chemo
given
- current schedules
reach remission rates
of 95%
- intensification
- block of chemo given to consolidate remission
- improves cure rates but w/ increased toxicity
- central nervous sys
- cytotoxic drugs penetrate poorly into CNS
- additional
Rx w/
intrathecal
chemo
- to prevent CNS relapse
- as leukaemic cells in CNS
may survive effective systemic
Rx
- continuing therapy
- moderate intensity chemo continued up to 3 years from diag
- routine co-trimoxazole prophylaxis
- to prevent Pneumocystitis carinii pneumonia
- treatment of relapse
- high dose chemo, often + total body irradiation + bone marrow transplantation
- alternative to chemo after a relapse
- acute myeloid leukaemia
- acute
non-lymphocytic
leukaemia
- chronic myeloid leukaemia &
other myeloproliferative
disorders
- rare