How is chronic lymphocytic leukemia treated?
While there is still no cure for chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), there are several types of treatment designed to bring this disease into remission, including chemotherapy, radiation therapy, biological therapy, bone marrow transplantation, and peripheral stem cell transplantation. Currently, bone marrow transplantation, peripheral stem cell transplantation, and biological therapy-which involves using the patient’s own immune system to fight the disease-are being tested in clinical trials and have not been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
While there is still no cure for chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), there are several types of treatment designed to bring this disease into remission, including chemotherapy, radiation therapy, biological therapy, bone marrow transplantation, and peripheral stem cell transplantation. Currently, bone marrow transplantation, peripheral stem cell transplantation, and biological therapy-which involves using the patient’s own immune system to fight the disease-are being tested in clinical trials and have not been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Observation-Doctors sometimes observe the patient and patterns of cancer growth for up to or longer than a year before choosing a treatment option. Chemotherapy-In chemotherapy, a specific combination of drugs is either injected into or swallowed by the patient to fight cancer cell growth. The dosage and type of drug(s) used vary from case to case and from stage to stage. Radiation Therapy-High-level doses of radiation are used
You and your caregiver will decide on the best treatment for you. You might not have treatment if you are in an early stage and do not have symptoms. If you do not have treatment, then your caregiver will ask you to come back for follow-up visits. During these visits, your caregiver will give you a physical exam and do blood tests. He will check to see if you are still in the same stage. He will also decide whether treatment should be started. Your have one or more of the following treatments: • • Chemotherapy: • This medicine, often called chemo, is used to treat cancer. It works by killing tumor cells. Chemotherapy may also be used to shrink lymph nodes that have cancer in them. Once the tumor is smaller, you may need surgery to cut out the rest of the cancer. • Many different chemotherapy medicines are used to treat cancer. You may need blood tests often. These blood tests show how your body is doing and how much chemotherapy is needed. Chemotherapy can have many side effects. Careg
