In leukemia, the DNA of a single cell in your bone marrow will mutate, that is, it gets changed and cannot function properly and develop further. Often, leukemia behaves like abnormal white blood cells. Blood cancer is one of the concerning conditions, but do you believe that just by understanding and treating the condition in its early stages will make a huge difference? Likewise, fatigue is one of the signs of the first stage of leukemia. Read on to understand the actual mechanism behind this.
What is leukemia?
Leukemia is nothing but one of the cancer types that mainly disturbs your bone marrow and blood, we also refer to this condition as blood cancer and there are many types of leukemia. All these types disturb your body in different ways, but in common all of type of blood cancer will begin from the bone marrow where blood cells are made.
Further, you need to understand that blood cancer doesn’t happen overnight, but progresses through stages. By understanding these stages, notably the first stage of leukemia, can save your life. Simply, if you find the blood cancer symptoms in its early stages, it will greatly help you in getting effective treatment.
How does leukemia develop?
As we mentioned above, usually blood cancer begins in the bone marrow, which is one of the soft spongy tissues in the inner cavity of your bones, from where your body’s blood cells are made. Also, before reaching the complete mature forms, the blood cells will undergo multiple stages, when you should consider visiting leukemia specialists in Coimbatore. The normal blood cells are:
- Red blood cells: These cells will carry oxygen and other vital materials to all the organs and tissues in your body.
- White blood cells: These cells play a significant role in combating infections.
- Platelets: These cells prevent you from blood clots.
That is, if you are experiencing blood cancer, in your body the cells will grow dramatically and become uncontrollable. These abnormal cells are called leukemia cells, and after some time they will spread completely inside your bone marrow.
How will leukemia affect your body?
Simply, having several normal cells and blood cancer cells will be unhealthy for many reasons like,
- These blood cancer cells will not help you maintain your health.
- The healthy cells occupy just a small space and assist in maturing and multiplying inside your bone marrow because the leukemia cells overtake them.
- Certain white blood cells, and healthy white blood cells, and platelets will be released in your blood. As a result, your body’s tissues and organs will not get sufficient oxygen required to function properly. Further, your body fails to combat infections when needed.
What are the types of leukemia?
There are many subtypes, but mainly there are four types of blood cancer. Doctors classify blood cancer based on the speed at which it grows and from where it arises. Further, let’s see about its classification:
- Acute leukemia:Usually, blood cancer cells grow very fast and the disease progresses rapidly. When you are affected by acute leukemia, you will become sick within a few days due to the formation of leukemia cells. Also, acute leukemia is one of the serious conditions, and immediate medical treatment is required. Notably, this condition is more common in children.
- Chronic leukemia: These cells act as both immature and mature cells, few cells will start to function when they need to work, but not like their counterparts. Acute leukemia grows rapidly, but chronic leukemia grows gradually, even if you are affected by this condition you will not experience symptoms for years. Likewise, chronic leukemia is more common in adults.
Blood cancer affects people of all ages, but leukemia mainly affects elderly people above 65 years, women who are assigned male birth, and white people. Few people think that blood cancer is a pediatric condition, but it is most common among children and teens.
What are the symptoms of Leukemia?
Simply, the symptoms are based on the type of blood cancer you’re going through. For example, as we mentioned earlier, if you are facing chronic leukemia you will not notice symptoms at the early stages. Also, the early symptoms of leukemia include:
- Fatigue
- Fever
- Night sweats
- Shortness of breath
- Frequent infections
- Sudden weight loss
- Joint pain
- Painful ribs
What are the early stages of blood cancer?
There are different stages of leukemia, a normal person will have high levels of WBC, and they will have no symptoms.
- In stage 1 leukemia, individuals’ WBC will remain high and their lymph nodes will be enlarged.
- In stage 2 leukemia, individuals will have high WBC and they will become anemic, along with enlarged lymph nodes.
- In stage 3 leukemia, individuals will have large WBC, with large lymph nodes and enlarged spleen or liver.
- In stage 4 leukemia, patients will have high WBC and with low platelets. Along with that, they will be anemic and will have enlarged spleen and lymph nodes, when the symptoms will be more severe.
Is Fatigue an early sign of leukemia?
It’s common to feel fatigued after long working hours, but when you feel fatigued even after getting a sufficient amount of rest can be a sign of cancer. Cancer cells will use all of your nutrients to grow and advance, your body will lack vital nutrients. We call this nutrient theft when you feel extreme tiredness. Simply, there may be numerous causes for your fatigue, but most of them are not cancer-related. Whenever your symptoms begin to worsen and affect the quality of your life, then you should consider visiting a doctor.
How does fatigue affect people with leukemia?
Surviving with blood cancer is one of the challenging tasks and it also disturbs your everyday life. Even a few people say that this is one of the worst pains in their lives, and this condition makes people tired very easily. Often people with blood cancer will experience fatigue.
What causes fatigue in leukemia?
Simply, fatigue is the primary symptom and first stage of leukemia, the treatment for blood cancer includes chemotherapy and radiation therapy. When you understand what actually causes blood cancer, it will help you to treat the condition better. Further, let’s see some common leukemia symptoms and causes of blood cancer and also how they affect your life.
1) Pain:
Blood cancer pain will disturb you a lot, and most importantly your sleep will be affected, further, your appetite will be reduced and limit your activity. Eventually, when experiencing chronic pain, you will start to feel depressed. Further, you will also feel fatigued and exhausted.
2) Insufficient physical activity:
In this condition, the primary symptom is acute pain, further cancer will affect your physical activity. Lack of physical activity can result in fatigue, notably if you are one who frequently exercises.
3) Diet:
Diet is the most important thing that keeps your body working properly and keeps you alert. When you are taking medication for blood cancer you will lose your appetite, and eventually, you will lose weight and also a lack of quality nutrition. Further, you will face vomiting, mouth sores, and loss of taste and smell.
4) Anemia:
Individuals’ fatigue will become worse when they face anemia along with blood cancer. When someone’s red blood cell count decreases, they will develop anemia. Further, the treatment for this disease can affect several cells, or the body may not supply enough of them. Weakness and fatigue are some of the common symptoms of anemia. Even your healthcare provider will suggest taking a blood test to diagnose whether you have anemia.
5) Hormonal changes:
Simply, based on the type of blood cancer you experience, your fatigue will change. When you are in the first stage of leukemia, you will experience more hormonal changes, notably chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). These hormonal modifications, like the emotional impacts of a cancer diagnosis and its treatments, can lead to fatigue.
6) Sleep-related issues:
Sleeping issues such as insomnia, interrupted sleep, and even bad sleep can result in fatigue. An individual can lose their sleep due to the pain, medications, stress, and anxiety.
7) Medications:
Apart from all these reasons, even certain medications consumed to manage blood cancer signs like pain relievers can cause fatigue. Post-treatment, it will take at least six months to a year for chemotherapy.
How to manage fatigue with leukemia?
Cancer-related fatigue can be caused by both physical and psychological factors. A holistic approach is required to manage your fatigue, based on the cause. Reach out to your healthcare team and never hesitate to discuss your leukemia. Further, let’s see some leukemia managing strategies.
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Do exercise and physical activity:
Individuals with leukemia find it difficult to do activities like household chores, walking, and even gardening. Also, whenever people affected by leukemia do heavy work, they can’t do anything on the following days. Luckily, exercise will help to manage your fatigue. Visit a physical therapist to get a personalized exercise plan for you. Exercising will help you strengthen your muscles, ease pain, and manage the symptoms of leukemia and also the side effects of treatment. Also, it is crucial to remember that, before initiating any exercise routine, discuss with your doctor about your condition and get their feedback.
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Eat nutritious foods:
Consuming nutritious foods is crucial for people who are experiencing extreme fatigue and leukemia. If your diet influences your fatigue, you should consider visiting a licensed dietitian. So that you will get the right diet plan consisting of nutrients, calories, and fluids for your specific needs.
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Take your vitamins and medications:
The best vitamins, and medications that help fatigue include:
- Vitamin B12
- Vitamin D3
Also, before consuming any medications or supplements, consider consulting with your doctor, because they can negatively affect your cancer treatments.
When to consult your doctor?
Your healthcare provider will offer more ideas to assist in managing your fatigue and enhance your energy levels. Even in severe cases, doctors will refer you to specialists like dietitians and physical therapists. Never forget to inform about the vitamins, and medication you consume to your healthcare provider to prevent yourself from consuming unwanted side effects and drug interactions.
How to diagnose leukemia?
Usually, when it comes to leukemia diagnosis, doctors will begin with a blood test just to find your blood cell count. Later, a bone marrow biopsy will be performed to diagnose cancer cells. These tests highly help to diagnose and find what type of leukemia you have.
Simply, if you diagnose leukemia in the initial stages, it will be better to treat the condition. There are several treatment options available to treat leukemia like chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and stem cell transplant. Your doctor will prescribe the medications based on your condition and type of leukemia.
What are the treatments available to treat this condition?
When you are under cancer treatment, those medications will only target cancer but several cells and tissues will be affected. There are some common treatments to treat this condition:
- Chemotherapy
- Radiation therapy
- Immunotherapy
- Stem cell transplant
All the above-mentioned treatments will greatly help you in combating your cancer and other issues that arise along with it.
What are the outcomes of leukemia?
It’s hard to find out whether the leukemia is growing because everyone has different outcomes, and they include:
- Genetic abnormalities: In leukemia, mutations will take place, and these mutations are crucial predictors of outcome.
- Type of leukemia: Few types of leukemia are connected with more favorable outcomes than others.
- Blood cell counts: During diagnosis, the number of leukemia cells will determine the outcome.
- Age: when you are younger and diagnosed with leukemia, you can get better outcomes.
- Health: In common, if you are healthier during your diagnosis, you can expect better outcomes with proper treatment.
- Response to treatment: The period of time it takes for cancer to go into remission shows the success rate of the treatment.
- Presence of leukemia: Often it is difficult to treat cells in your spinal fluid, so your central nervous system will also determine the outcomes.
Also, when compared to others, your doctor is the most reliable resource for dealing with your condition in better ways. So discuss with your doctor about your outcomes.
What are the ways to prevent leukemia?
As all we know blood cancer is one of the concerning conditions, and you may think that is there no any ways to prevent leukemia, but certain effective ways are there to prevent blood cancer like, If you feel that none of the above-mentioned preventive strategies are helping you, consider visiting a hematology doctor in Coimbatore.
- Following proper diet
- Consistent exercise
- Sufficient rest
- Staying hydrated
- A small amount of frequent meals
If you feel that none of the above-mentioned preventive strategies are helping you, consider visiting a hematology doctor in Coimbatore. If you want to live a normal life without bothering about this condition, you should effectively balance your blood cancer by following certain strategies. Further, to manage this condition you can try doing,
- Medications
- Lifestyle changes
- Frequent screening
Simply, when you are diagnosed with this condition, the initial stage is very crucial, because you will face overwhelming emotions, so you are also advised to get mental health support through counseling. It is also crucial to understand that fatigue is not the only symptom of blood cancer, it can arise due to numerous other causes. You need to get medical treatment only when it persists or is accompanied by other symptoms.
Final thoughts:
In conclusion, we can say that fatigue is the primary sign of initial-stage leukemia, also remember that this is not the only sign. Understanding the symptoms and getting timely medical treatment can greatly help people with leukemia. If you are experiencing any of the signs of leukemia, never hesitate to reach out to the doctor.
