Access of Care in the World for Leukemia

Introduction

Leukemia is a hematological malignancy that attacks the white blood cells and affects the bone marrow and the lymphatic system. Adult Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL) is an aggressive type of leukemia characterized by the existence of excessive numbers of lymphoblast or lymphocytes in the bone marrow and peripheral blood. (Bhatnagar, N., Quereshi, A. 2017). “This disease has an elevated mortality rate with a five-year survival of 30% to 45% in developed countries”. (Bhatnagar, N., Quereshi, A. 2017. p491). However, (ALL) is the most common cancer in children and is among the most curable of the pediatric malignancies.

(Bhatnagar, N., Qureshi, A. 2017). Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL) is the most common leukemia in developed countries is an incurable disease in the elderly, between 40 to 70 years with a median survival of ten-years. “Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) is a heterogeneous hematologic steam malignancy in adults with an incident rate of 3-5% per 100,000 populations”. (Ruiz-Arguelles, GJ. 2016. p291).

Treatment depends on prognostic factor assessment and age of patients. However, there is a significant risk of death during the hemorrhage secondary to disseminated intravascular coagulation. This has contributed to a gap in the prognosis of patients between developing countries. Child leukemia is the most common diagnosed in children worldwide. Cure rates of childhood leukemia are high in economically developed countries, because of the adverse late effects of the disease and its treatment. Leukemia is a significant health and life-threatening problem for pediatric cancer patients. Family care givers receive a little preparation, information, or support to perform their care giver role. Program intervention revealed a significant improvement in family knowledge and practice, and reduced levels of stress. (Jaime, P., Jimenez-Castillo, C. 2017). The reduction in deaths from infection during induction seems to be the starting point for improving the chances for children and adolescents with Leukemia anywhere in the world. Identification of modifiable risk factors for implementation primary prevention remains the goal. However, the pace of diagnostic and therapeutic advances has been slower. Supporting research in these fields will enhance the generation of new knowledge and improve the care of patients suffering from these diseases.

References

1. Bhatnagar, N., Qureshi, A., & Hall, G. (2017). Leukemias. Journal Pediatric & Child Health. 27(11), 489-494 (6p). doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paed.2017.08.007
2. Friedmann, A., Weinstein, H. (2000). The Role of Prognostic Features in the Treatment of Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. The official journal of the Society for translational oncology. Vol. 5 no. 4 p321-328 http://theoncologist.alphamedpress.org/content/5/4/321.short
3. Garland, C., Gorham, E., Grant, W., Garland, F. (2011). Ultraviolet B and Incident Rates of Leukemia Worldwide. American Journal in Preventing Medicine. 41(1):68-74
4. Jaime-Perez, J,C., Jimenez-Castillo, R,A., Herrera-Garza, J,L., Gutierrez-Aguirre, H., Marfil-Rivera, L,J., Gomez-Almaguer, D. (2017). Survival Rates of Adults with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia in a Low-Income Population: A Decade of Experience at a Single Institution in Mexico. Journal in Clinical Lymphoma, Myeloma & Leukemia. 17(1), p60-68 (p). doi: http://dx.doi.org.ezproxy.snhu.edu/10.106/j.clml.2016.08.013
5. Ruiz-Arguelles, GJ. (2016). Advances in the diagnosis and treatment of Acute and Chronic leukemia in Mexico. Journal Instituto Nacional de la Salud Publica. Vol. 58(2), pp 291-5.

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