Acute Myeloid Leukaemia

Leukaemia is referred to as the cancer of blood cells; the bone marrow produces abnormal white blood cells known as leukaemia cells and leukemic blast cells – these cells do not die when they are old or damaged, because of this, the leukaemia cells build up and outnumber normal blood cells (National Cancer Institute, 2013). There are numerous types of leukaemia meaning that symptoms, diagnosis, treatments, and social and economic effects are different for each type of cancer.

The four most common types of leukaemia include acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL), acute myeloid leukaemia (AML), chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL), and chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML) – acute leukaemia refers to the rapid development of leukaemia cells, often becoming

Symptoms could include fatigue, breathlessness, and a pale complexion due to lack of red blood cells, recurring infections due to lack of white blood cells, unexpected bleeding and bruising due to lack of platelets (Health Talk, 2015). Other, more uncommon, symptoms may include abnormal enlargement of the liver or spleen, diseases affecting the lymph nodes, gum hypertrophy, skin infiltration, and petechiae (Bain, 2003). Symptoms could also arise depending on where the leukaemia cells have infiltrated; for example, if leukaemia cells are present in the brain, symptoms could include headaches, seizures, confusion, loss of muscle control, and vomiting (Stöppler, 2015). Leukaemia symptoms are discreet and very subtle, making the disease hard to diagnose without numerous laboratory

The number of deaths caused by cancer significantly affects the economy – it means the removal of many productive workers from the workforce; in a single year, over 50,000 people died of cancer, costing the UK economy £585 million (International Longetivity Centre, 2015). Cancer deaths also affects families and communities, resulting in the loss of caregivers, relatives, partners, and friends, as well as depriving communities of volunteers – the losses have a combined cost of approximately £236 million (International Longetivity Centre, 2015). For families who have children with cancer, the financial issues becomes a significant concern when the family has been consumed with other challenges; the economic burden can have long-term effects on the financial security, quality of life, and the well-being of the entire family (Miedema, Easley, Fortin, Hamilton, & Mathews, 2008). In 2012, leukaemia received £32 million for research, and approximately receives over £7,000 per death (International Longetivity Centre, 2015), making leukaemia the most highly-funded of all other cancers. The money that goes into the research can help improve standard treatments and help fund new treatments, so more and more people with the disease can