Chronic Myeloid Leukemia

What is Chronic Myeloid Leukemia?

Patients with chronic myelogenous leukemia, called CML for short, form too many bone marrow stem cells which develop into white blood cells. In CML, the bone marrow stem cells turn into a specific type of white blood cells, called granulocytes. Some of the bone marrow stem cells never because mature white blood cells. These are called blasts. Over time, the granulocytes and blasts begin to crowd out the red blood cells and platelets in the bone marrow.

How common is Chronic Myeloid Leukemia?

Chronic myelogenous leukemia is rare in children.

What is the outlook for a child diagnosed with CML?

The prognosis and treatment options for childhood CML depend on how long it has been since the patient was diagnosed and how many blast cells are in the blood.