How is a bone marrow transplant carried out?
• What is the outlook for leukaemia in children? • Where can parents of children with leukaemia get information and support? What is leukaemia? Leukaemia is the medical name for cancer of the blood. It is a very serious illness in which the marrow inside the body s bones produces a large number of abnormal bone marrow cells. The remaining healthy cells have less space in which to develop, which means that less red blood cells and platelets are produced. There are many types of leukaemia, as many as the different types of marrow cell affected. Leukaemia is classified as either chronic or acute, depending on the type of disease and how long it takes to develop. Chronic leukaemia progresses more slowly. Acute leukaemia attacks immature bone marrow cells and has a much more sudden onset. It is the rarer form of leukaemia, but unfortunately it tends to be the form of leukaemia most common in children. Leukaemia is also classified according to the particular type of white cell that is prolif
