Life expectancy will depend on a person's age, the type of leukemia, and other factors. For children with acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL), the 5-year survival rate is now around 90%, according to the American Cancer Society. For other types, however, the chance of living 5 years or more with leukemia may be lower .
In the United States, overall, 5-year survival among people diagnosed with leukemia is 65%. However, these statistics vary greatly according to the specific subtype of disease: Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) 5-year survival rate is 85.4%. Acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) 5-year survival rate is 68.8%.
People in stages 0 to II may live for 5 to 20 years without treatment. CLL has a very high incidence rate in people older than 60 years. CLL affects men more than women. If the disease has affected the B cells, the person's life expectancy can range from 10 to 20 years.
If caught early, leukemia can be cured by undergoing several cancer treatments.
Chronic Leukemia May Go Undetected
Unlike acute leukemia, chronic leukemia develops slowly. It may take months or even several years before the disease begins to cause symptoms that alert the patient that something is wrong.
Chronic leukemia usually gets worse slowly, over months to years, while acute leukemia develops quickly and progresses over days to weeks. The two main types of leukemia can be further organized into groups that are based on the type of white blood cell that is affected — lymphoid or myeloid.
Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is the most fatal type of leukemia. The five-year survival rate (how many people will be alive five years after diagnosis) for AML is 29.5%. Leukemia is a cancer that usually affects white blood cells, though it can start in other types of blood cells.
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.
Generally for all people with ALL:
more than 65 out of 100 people (more than 65%) will survive their leukaemia for 5 years or more after being diagnosed.
Unlike hospice care, which requires a terminal diagnosis, palliative care for leukemia or lymphoma can begin when a patient receives their diagnosis. The palliative care team works in conjunction with the patient's current team of physicians to ensure all of the patient's needs are being met.
There are different types of leukemia which can be grouped into acute leukemias and chronic leukemias, and it's a complete myth that leukemia is incurable. Thanks to advancements in treatment such as better chemotherapy and transplant regimens, many patients can be cured of their disease.
Mel Mann was diagnosed with chronic myeloid leukemia and given three years to live — more than 27 years ago. He enrolled in one of the first clinical trials for a drug called Gleevec (imatinib).
Almost 90 out of 100 (almost 90 percent) will survive their leukemia for five years or more after diagnosis. For those aged between 15 and 39: Almost 65 out of 100 (almost 65 percent) will survive their leukemia for five years or more after diagnosis.
Life expectancy will depend on a person's age, the type of leukemia, and other factors. For children with acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL), the 5-year survival rate is now around 90%, according to the American Cancer Society. For other types, however, the chance of living 5 years or more with leukemia may be lower .
Today, nearly 90 percent of adults diagnosed with ALL achieve a complete remission, which means that leukemia cells can no longer be seen in the bone marrow with a microscope.
Common signs and symptoms of leukemia include: Fatigue, tiring easily. Fever or night sweats. Frequent infections.
Leukemia starts in the soft, inner part of the bones (bone marrow), but often moves quickly into the blood. It can then spread to other parts of the body, such as the lymph nodes, spleen, liver, central nervous system and other organs.
Acute leukemia symptoms can often appear suddenly
With acute leukemia, symptoms tend to develop very quickly. You may suddenly spike a fever that won't go away, develop an infection for no apparent reason, or start bleeding spontaneously from your nose or gums and not be able to stop it.
As a person approaches the later stages of AML, they may experience pain, fatigue, appetite loss, difficulty focusing and speaking, muscle loss, weakness, low blood pressure, and breathing difficulty, among other symptoms.
Increasingly, researchers are finding that leukemia may run in a family due to inherited gene mutations. AML occurs more often in people with the following inherited disorders: Down syndrome. Ataxia telangiectasia.
Some people with leukemia or myelodysplastic syndromes have bone or joint pain. This bone pain is most often felt in the long bones of the arms and legs, in the ribs and in the breastbone. Joint pain and swelling of the large joints, like the hips and shoulders, sometimes starts several weeks after bone pain begins.