Symptoms
Early symptoms of leukemia are like symptoms of the flu or other common diseases. Symptoms include:

• Fever

• Fatigue

• Aches in bones or joints

• Headaches

• Skin rashes

• Swollen glands (lymph nodes)

• Frequent infections

• Unexplained weight loss

• Bleeding or swelling of gums

• An enlarged spleen or liver, or a feeling of abdominal fullness

• Slow healing cuts, nosebleeds or frequent bruises

Diagnosis

• A bone marrow biopsy (a sample of bone marrow is removed and examined)

• Multiple blood tests to detect the presence of abnormal cells

• Tests for genetic abnormalities

Expected Duration

• Stays until death

• May change to another form of leukemia

Prevention

• No way to prevent most forms of leukemia

• Close relatives of people with leukemia should follow a normal schedule of routine physical exams, unless suspicious symptoms develop

Treatment

• Depends on the stage of the disease, as well as on the person's age and overall health

• In Stage I or II, observation or chemotherapy is the usual treatment

• In Stage III or IV, intensive chemotherapy or multiple drug chemotherapies may be used

• Some people also may be treated with a bone marrow transplant

• A drug called Gleevec has become standard therapy for those in the early stage of this disease

Stages
For chronic lymphoid leukemia, the next step after diagnosis is to determine the extent of the cancer. This is called staging. There are four stages of chronic lymphoid leukemia:

• Stage 0 — There are too many lymphocytes in the blood. Generally, there are no other symptoms of leukemia.

• Stage I — Lymph nodes are swollen because of too many lymphocytes in the blood.

• Stage II — Lymph nodes, spleen and liver are swollen as a result of an overabundance of lymphocytes.

• Stage III — Anemia has developed because there are too few red blood cells in the blood.

• Stage IV — There are too few platelets in the blood. Lymph nodes, spleen and liver may be swollen. Anemia may be present.