What is AML Leukemia?
Acute myelogenous leukemia (AML) is a type of cancer of the blood and bone marrow the spongy tissue inside bones where blood cells are made. It’s called acute leukemia because it progresses rapidly and affects immature blood cells, rather than mature ones. It’s called myelogenous (MI-uh-loj-uh-nus) leukemia because it affects a group of white blood cells called the myeloid cells, which normally develop into the various types of mature blood cells, such as red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets. This type of leukemia is also known as acute myeloblastic leukemia, acute granulocytic leukemia and acute nonlymphocytic leukemia. Normally, your bone marrow produces immature cells (stem cells) in a controlled way, and they mature and specialize into the various types of blood cells, as needed. In people with AML, the bone marrow produces immature cells that usually develop into a type of abnormal white blood cell called a myeloblast. These myeloblasts aren’t able to mature and perfor
