I. Overview: Leukemia is a malignant tumor of the hematological system and is the most common malignant tumor in children, occurring in children between the ages of 3 and 6. If not diagnosed and treated in time, they can only live for about 6 months after diagnosis. More than 15,000 new children with leukemia are diagnosed and treated in China every year, but only a few patients can receive standardized diagnosis and treatment, less than 5% in rural areas and less than 10% in urban areas. The main reason for this result is that, on the one hand, the primary care physicians are not able to correctly understand the disease, not timely diagnosis and early treatment, and even if treated, there is a lack of systematic and standardized program of treatment, resulting in some children relapsing, on the other hand, and parents talk about cancer, thinking that leukemia is an incurable disease, and give up treatment after diagnosis. In fact, over the years, with the continuous progress of science and technology, the development and use of new chemotherapy drugs, the efficacy of childhood leukemia has been a breakthrough, not only to enable the child to survive, but also to achieve a cure.
Second, the type: leukemia according to the condition and bone marrow examination, divided into acute leukemia and chronic leukemia, acute leukemia is further divided into acute lymphocytic leukemia (referred to as acute gonorrhea) and acute non-lymphocytic leukemia (referred to as acute non-gonorrhea) according to bone marrow examination.
Third, the characteristics of childhood leukemia: childhood leukemia is different from adult leukemia, mainly acute leukemia, accounting for more than 97% of all leukemias, of which more than 75% of acute leukemia is acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Children’s leukemia is not an incurable disease, at present, the regular treatment units at home and abroad have been able to cure more than 80%-90% of children with acute gonorrhea. The efficacy is obviously better than that of adult leukemia.
Fourth, the treatment of childhood leukemia: mainly chemotherapy, that is, drug therapy. It is a combination of several chemotherapeutic drugs with different mechanisms of action to form several programs of sequential treatment, the course of treatment is generally 2-3 years. Early treatment is mainly concentrated in the hospital, and remission can be followed by maintenance treatment at home, regular hospital review and intensive treatment (only for high-risk patients). Some high-risk children or children with relapse require bone marrow or peripheral blood stem cell transplantation.
The key point is that both the majority of primary pediatricians and parents of children with leukemia must change the view that leukemia is an incurable disease, have the understanding that leukemia is curable and the confidence to overcome the disease, and at the same time, must receive a standardized and mature chemotherapy regimen and adhere to the systemic treatment, and only then can our children be cured.