Chronic Leukemia Symptoms

Chronic lymphocytic leukemia, or CLL, is a cancer of white blood cells and bone marrow that occurs most often among middle-aged and older adults. Among adult patients, CLL is the most common form of chronic leukemia, but many patients do not show any obvious leukemia symptoms. Still, knowing the symptoms of leukemia can help people recognize the warning signs early on. There is currently no cure for CLL, but many patients can live for several years with the help of various leukemia treatment options.

People who are afflicted with CLL may experience the following signs of leukemia:

• Fatigue
• Unexplained weight loss
• Frequent fevers (people with CLL often develop immune system problems)
• Infections that don't clear up
• Pain or swelling below the ribs (resulting from an enlarged spleen)
• Enlarge lymph nodes
• Night sweats

See a doctor immediately if you have any of these chronic leukemia symptoms. Child leukemia symptoms for CLL are extremely rare, while adult leukemia symptoms are far more common. Still, the sooner a leukemia diagnosis can be made, the more likely the patient is to get quality, timely treatment.

Chronic Leukemia Treatment

Many patients who are initially diagnosed with either of the types of chronic leukemia aren't immediately treated. Rather than initiate invasive and potentially disruptive leukemia treatments, many doctors tend to monitor each patient's condition until the point that treatment will actually make a quantifiable difference in the person's well being. For most patients, there is no cure for leukemia, and even those who receive bone marrow transplants face a large likelihood of remission later in life. However, the point of treatment for leukemia isn't to cure the disease; rather, it's to extend the lives of patients by forcing the disease into remission as often as possible. Many patients with leukemia signs and symptoms will undergo years of on-again, off-again treatment.

Leukemia research is ongoing, and there's always hope that someday a widespread leukemia cure may be found. For now, the average CLL leukemia life expectancy for a patient is about