Pregnancy already produces a million reasons to take care of health and fitness. Most health complications during this stage are rarely related to any underlying issue. But when talking about leukemia, the need for high perspective and a fundamental priority arises. We have all heard about leukemia, at least in general terms. It is defined as blood cancer, and is a cancerous proliferation of the bone marrow. It means an abnormal growth in the amount of white blood cells. These cells then pass into the bloodstream and exceed the normal level of healthy white blood cells, platelets and red blood cells. Due to the excessive amount of cancerous white blood cells, The body’s resistance to infections and other attacks becomes weak and poor. These cancer cells also accumulate in other organs of the body and disrupt the normal functioning of each of them. It is observed that the leukemia that occurs during pregnancy is extremely rare. Almost 1 in 100,000 women have the possibility of the disease. Most of the time, a routine blood test will reveal if there is any abnormality in the blood. Next, you should understand in more detail about leukemia and pregnancy. 000 women have the possibility of the disease. Most of the time, a routine blood test will reveal if there is any abnormality in the blood. Next, you should understand in more detail about leukemia and pregnancy. 000 women have the possibility of the disease. Most of the time, a routine blood test will reveal if there is any abnormality in the blood. Next, you should understand in more detail about leukemia and pregnancy.
One of the facts of leukemia, is that it is a part of the group of diseases called hematological malignancy. It can be acute – that develops rapidly, and chronic – that develops very slowly. This type of cancer can be classified into four main types. They are chronic myeloid, chronic lymphocytic, acute lymphocytic and acute myeloid leukemia. These are divided based on the severity of the cancer cells. Acute leukemia is a threat, as it develops very fast and can become an extreme situation, as well as death. While chronic leukemia is a slow-growing cancer, it can take years to pose a serious threat. Due to very few cases of leukemia during pregnancy, very little research has been done so far. In addition to the total number of cases, most of the findings were acute, consisting of one third of the lymphatic and two thirds of the myeloid. Chronic chronic myeloid leukemia is below these cases, and chronic lymphocytic leukemia is an extremely rare case among all.
It is not true that pregnancy is the cause of this terrible cancer, nor will it affect the course of the disease. However, it can affect the diagnostic process, since during the early stage of the disease, only a blood test reveals typical clinical symptoms such as anemia. Other symptoms such as dyspnea and fatigue may also be related to pregnancy. This is sometimes fatal, since any delay in the case of a typical acute leukemia can pose a serious threat to both the mother and the baby. According to the cases studied, it was observed that leukemia develops throughout the pregnancy phase. This can affect the development of the fetus. In severe cases, where the treatment was not taken, the fetus showed a delay in intrauterine growth (the growth and development of the baby).
It has not been shown that termination of pregnancy will help in treatment. In such cases, abortion is not recommended if the mother does not want the same.
Treatment and prognosis
For the treatment of leukemia during pregnancy, it is not a generalization that should be treated like other cases of leukemia. Abortion is an option, but it can be considered in the early stages, only if women want to go for it. In the case of continuing pregnancy, the treatment against leukemia can be advised with caution and intense attention, with the full precautions to induce labor in the best stages for the mother and the baby. Treatment of acute leukemia depends on the types of possibilities of acute leukemia.
- In the case of acute promyelocytic leukemia during pregnancy, treatment becomes critical and is a challenge, since there is a high risk of mortality in these cases. Treatment options such as abortion can also be discussed, and if the pregnancy should continue, chemotherapy with normal fetal monitoring and extreme management of complications is recommended.
- In the case of acute lymphocytic leukemia and pregnancy, immediate treatment is advisable. Care must be taken due to the risks of therapy that affects the fetus.
- For cases of acute lymphoblastic leukemia during pregnancy, chemotherapy is recommended, and case studies have reported fair results in fetal development and complete remission.
- In the case of acute myeloid leukemia, therapy is recommended. However, there are significant risks to the fetus. Recent advances in therapy may suggest some improvements.
Although there have not been many results that claim harm to the fetus due to therapy for treatment, some cases with treatment in the early stage of pregnancy showed some effects of therapy on the baby. However, relatively after birth, most children live healthy, with no trace of leukemia in them.
There is very little chance of leukemia during pregnancy, and early detection and diagnosis will save a lot for both the mother and the baby.
