Is Surgery An Option?

Transcript

Leukemia is a cancer of blood cells. And blood cells travel throughout the body. Therefore leukemia is never managed with surgery, which is a treatment for a localized disease, or a disease that is in one place.

Stem cell transplant is occasionally used to treat the most aggressive leukemias or leukemias that have come back after standard chemotherapy. Again, this is a potentially high-risk procedure that involves treating a patient with aggressive chemotherapy to not only limit the amount of leukemia, but also to get rid of the patient’s immune system.

Afterward, a donor’s immune system is introduced and hopefully the new immune system can fight the remaining leukemia cells. This therapy is associated with a high risk of complications, but in some cases offers the best chance of a cure.

Key Takeaways

1. Leukemia is a cancer of blood cells that travel throughout the body, so leukemia is never managed with surgery.

2. Stem cell transplant is occasionally used to treat the most aggressive leukemias or leukemias that have come back after standard chemotherapy.

3. This is a potentially high-risk procedure that is associated with a high risk of complications, but in some cases offers the best chance of a cure.