In America alone, over 105,000 people will contract leukemia this year. More than 59,000 others will die from the disease. Leukemia kills more children between the ages of 11 and 15 than other diseases. It kills more adult than children. People over the age of 60 are most often affected, and men more than women. There is no known way to prevent leukemia, but it can be treated effectively.

Today, modern medical advancements offers more hope than ever before to people who have leukemia. Specifically, with the complete mapping of the human genome, new treatments mean improved chances of survival for many patients with leukemia.

The Human Genome Project (HGP) can someday unravel the mystery of leukemia. Drug companies, for instance, are collecting the genetic know-how to make medicines tailored to specific genes that cause leukemia. In the year to come, your pharmacist may hand you a drug that deals effectively with your leukemic genetic profile. Other companies may crunch out blood tests that reveal telltale disease-gene mutations, and forecast your chances of coming down with conditions such as leukemia. And some scientists still hold out hope for gene therapy: directly adding healthy genes to a patient's body with leukemia.

Decoding the human genome will improve chances of survival for many patients and prevention for many more.

A new hope, the Human Genome Project.