brighid

One of my closest friends told me today that she has been diagnosed with chronic lymphocytic leukemia. I have done some research on it but some of the technical jargon is making my head spin. Could any of you doctor and scientific types break it down a bit. I am also a bit worried right now and that might also be clouding my ability to digest certain information. She has a history of cancer within her family, has had cervical cancer and also a pituitary tumor that is malignant and reappeared after two surgeries and radiation treatment. Treatment was stopped after it damaged the optic nerve in her left eye.


Thanks,
Brighid

theyeti

What specific terms and jargon are you having difficulty with? Or more generally, what is it you need to know about this specifc cancer or about cancer in general? (I'm not saying I can help, but if I know what you're asking at least I'll know if I can.)

theyeti

MortalWombat

See the <a href="http://www.cancer.gov/cancerinfo/pdq/treatment/CLL/Patient" target="_blank">National Cancer Institute's</a> info for starters.

[ October 17, 2002: Message edited by: MortalWombat ]</p>

brighid

Mortal Wombat and theyeti,

Thank you. That sight has much better explanations then the few I have had a chance to review – too many medical terms that I just didn’t understand … like at this site: <a href="http://www.meb.uni-bonn.de/cancernet/101003.html" target="_blank">http://www.meb.uni-bonn.de/cancernet/101003.html</a> (absolute lymphocytosis (&gt;15,000 per cubic millimeter) without adenopathy, hepatosplenomegaly, anemia, or thrombocytopenia.) my brain just went WHAT???

She has shown signs of anemia and before going to the doctor had complained to me that she was bruising way too easily for her own comfort level. She then had some swollen glands, but no sore throat etc., had been getting a lot of UTI infections … so given her history she immediately went to the docs.

She is 31 and in pretty good shape, but she now questions much of weight loss (70 lbs in one year) to potentially having this long before she was diagnosed.

The literature (and her doctors) say this is a slowly progressing leukemia, but I doubt that will be the case with her because of the reoccurrence of her pituitary tumor and cervical cancer within the past 18 months – 2 years.

Out of all the leukemia’s she could have I guess this is the “best” if one can refer to leukemia in such a way. She was worried it would be something much more debilitating and deadly. Cancer has just come a lot in my personal life lately … two friends of the family who are in their 60’s were diagnosed with different cancers – prostate and an inoperable, malignant brain tumor (they are husband and wife)… maybe my brain is just fried from reading about all of it …

What is the prognosis for this type of cancer? Complications?

Brighid

Dr Rick

Here's a <a href="http://www.merckmedicus.com/pp/us/hcp/hcp_patient_resource_allhandouts_content_search.js p?pg=/pp/us/common/crs/crs/chlymph.htm" target="_blank">site</a> that doesn't have a bunch of medical jargon.

Rick

brighid

Dr. Rick,

Thanks. I appreciate the info. I guess it will just be wait and see

Brighid

rdalin

I know someone who has CLL. She is in stage one (swollen glands, elevated white cell count) and has been for about eight years. The white cell count creeps up fairly slowly from year to year. There are no other symptoms.

She has been told it's very like that when she dies, it'll be from something else.

The main complications are increased infections as the disease progresses.