Leukemia For some, the first signs of leukemia show up in the mouth. In fact, a dentist may be the first doctor to detect the problem during your dental checkup. One of the first signs of leukemia can be gingivitis or swelling and bleeding gums.
Oral manifestations, mainly the spontaneous bleeding, are very common in patients with acute leukemia and may present as the initial evidence of the disease, reinforcing the importance of dentists in the early diagnosis of this disease.
Typical oral manifestations of acute leukaemias include gingival swelling, oral ulceration, spontaneous gingival bleeding, petechiae, mucosal pallor, herpetic infections and candidosis [4, 5, 6, 7, 13, 14]. Advanced cases may involve malaise, cervical lymphadenopathy, laryngeal pain and fever [8, 15].
Other oral symptoms of leukemia
swollen or painful gums. pale gums or paleness inside the mouth. an overgrowth of gum tissue around the teeth, which may cause the shape or size of the teeth to change in appearance.
Common signs and symptoms of leukemia include: Fatigue, tiring easily. Fever or night sweats. Frequent infections.
Gingivitis, or swelling and bleeding gums, is a sign of leukemia. Here are dental tips to keep your mouth healthy with leukemia.
Patients with leukemia can experience various symptoms that can cause pain and discomfort. This includes oral health issues like bleeding gums, also known as gingival bleeding, which can occur from bruising and plaque build-up alongside the gum line.
Bleeding can happen: inside the skull (intracranial haemorrhage) inside the lungs (pulmonary haemorrhage) inside the stomach (gastrointestinal haemorrhage)
Many dentists routinely check for mouth and oropharyngeal cancer. So they are often the first people to spot the early signs of cancer. If the dentist suspects cancer they can refer you to a specialist. Report any changes to your GP or dentist, especially if you smoke and drink a lot of alcohol.
Oral signs of leukemia occur rapidly in patients providing key evidence for the early detection of the disease [7]. The most common oral signs of leukemia are petechial hemorrhages of the soft and hard palate, gingival hyperplasia, mucosal pallor, rampant gingival bleeding, and oral ulcerations [4,7].
Leukoplakia appears as thick, white patches on the inside surfaces of your mouth. It has a number of possible causes, including repeated injury or irritation. It can also be a sign of precancerous changes in the mouth or mouth cancer.
Sometimes a routine dental checkup can uncover lymphoma, a type of cancer, before other signs are even present. And while a cancer discovery is not welcomed, early detection is.
While leukemia bruises can form anywhere on the body, they are most commonly found on the arms and legs.
Sometimes a patient with acute leukemia has no symptoms or has normal blood work even a few weeks or months before the diagnosis.
Leukemia often presents firstly in the oral cavity, some symptoms include: ❖ xerostomia/ dry mouth ❖ gingival bleeding ❖ candidiasis ❖ hemorrhage ❖ osteoradionecrosis ❖ dysguesia/taste alteration This hinders the body's ability to fight infection, which can make individuals immunosuppressed.
Other early warning signs of leukemia include: Fever, chills. Fatigue, weakness. Loss of appetite.
A diagnosis of leukemia is usually made by analyzing a patient's blood sample through a complete blood count (CBC) or microscopic evaluation of the blood, or by using flow cytometry.
Leukemia is commonly misdiagnosed as the following conditions: Influenza. Fever. Pathological fracture.
Often referred to as a “silent disease,” CLL can be difficult to diagnose, because people often don't have any symptoms until later in the disease, and others have symptoms that resemble signs of other conditions, such as a cold.
Age: The risk of most leukemias increases with age. The median age of a patient diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) or chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) is 65 years and older. However, most cases of acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) occur in people under 20 years old.