National Institutes of Health
- The primary NIH organization for research on Childhood Leukemia is the National Cancer Institute
A service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine 
National Institutes of Health
Childhood Leukemia
Leukemia is cancer of the white blood cells. It is the most common type of childhood cancer.
Your blood cells form in your bone marrow. White blood cells help your body fight infection. In leukemia, however, the bone marrow produces abnormal white blood cells. These cells crowd out the healthy blood cells, making it hard for blood to do its work. Leukemia can develop quickly or slowly. Acute leukemia is a fast growing type while chronic leukemia grows slowly. Children with leukemia usually have one of the acute types.
Risk factors for childhood leukemia include having a brother or sister with leukemia, having certain genetic disorders and having had radiation or chemotherapy. Treatment often cures childhood leukemia. Treatment options include chemotherapy, other drug therapy and radiation. In some cases bone marrow and blood stem cell transplantation might help.
NIH: National Cancer Institute
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Start Here
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Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (PDQ): Treatment(National Cancer Institute)
- Also available in Spanish
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Childhood Acute Myeloid Leukemia / Other Myeloid Malignancies (PDQ): Treatment(National Cancer Institute)
- Also available in Spanish
- What Is Childhood Leukemia?(American Cancer Society)
- Also available in Spanish
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Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (PDQ): Treatment
The top row in the table of contents box contains the following groups:
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Learn More
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Multimedia & Cool Tools
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For group Basics
For group Learn More
For group Multimedia & Cool Tools
The bottom row in the table of contents box contains the following groups:
Research
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Reference Shelf
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For You
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For group Research
For group Reference Shelf
For group For You
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Overviews
- Childhood Cancer: Leukemia(Nemours Foundation)
- Also available in Spanish
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Leukemia
(Patient Education Institute)
- Also available in Spanish
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Latest News
- FDA Approves Marqibo to Treat Rare Type of Leukemia(08/09/2012, Food and Drug Administration)
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Diagnosis/Symptoms
- Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia(College of American Pathologists) - PDF
- Bone Marrow Aspiration and Biopsy(American Association for Clinical Chemistry)
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Bone Marrow Tests(National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute)
- How Is Childhood Leukemia Classified?(American Cancer Society)
- How Is Childhood Leukemia Diagnosed?(American Cancer Society)
- Platelet Count(American Association for Clinical Chemistry)
- Understanding Blood Counts(Leukemia & Lymphoma Society)
- White Blood Cell Differential Count(American Association for Clinical Chemistry)
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Treatment
- Blood Transfusion(Leukemia & Lymphoma Society) - PDF
- How Is Childhood Leukemia Treated?(American Cancer Society)
- Immunotherapy(Nemours Foundation)
- Long-Term and Late Effects of Treatment(Leukemia & Lymphoma Society)
- Also available in Spanish
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MedlinePlus: Bone Marrow Transplantation(National Library of Medicine)
- Also available in Spanish
- Treatment of Children with Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia(American Cancer Society)
- Treatment of Children with Acute Myeloid Leukemia(American Cancer Society)
- Treatment of Children with APL (Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia)(American Cancer Society)
- Understanding Drug Therapy and Managing Side Effects(Leukemia & Lymphoma Society) - PDF
- Also available in Spanish
- Return to top
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Prevention/Screening
- What Are the Risk Factors for Childhood Leukemia?(American Cancer Society)
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Alternative Therapy
- Integrative Medicine and Complementary and Alternative Therapies As Part of Blood Cancer Care(Leukemia & Lymphoma Society) - PDF
- Also available in Spanish
- Return to top
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Coping
- Coping with Childhood Leukemia and Lymphoma(Leukemia & Lymphoma Society) - PDF
- Also available in Spanish
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Specific Conditions
- Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia(Nemours Foundation)
- Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML)(Nemours Foundation)
- Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia (CML)(Nemours Foundation)
- Juvenile Myelomonocytic Leukemia (JMML)(Nemours Foundation)
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Related Issues
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Care for Children and Adolescents with Cancer(National Cancer Institute)
- Also available in Spanish
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Magnetic Field Exposure and Cancer: Questions and Answers(National Cancer Institute)
- Newly Diagnosed: First Steps(Leukemia & Lymphoma Society)
- What Happens After Treatment for Childhood Leukemia?(American Cancer Society)
- What Should You Ask Your Child's Doctor about Childhood Leukemia?(American Cancer Society)
- What to Ask(Leukemia & Lymphoma Society)
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Young People with Cancer: A Handbook for Parents(National Cancer Institute)
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Care for Children and Adolescents with Cancer
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Tutorials
- Leukemia(Patient Education Institute)
- Also available in Spanish
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Financial Issues
- Patient Financial Aid(Leukemia & Lymphoma Society)
- Understanding Your Healthcare Coverage(Leukemia & Lymphoma Society)
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Clinical Trials
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ClinicalTrials.gov: Leukemia(National Institutes of Health)
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ClinicalTrials.gov: Childhood Leukemia(National Institutes of Health)
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ClinicalTrials.gov: Leukemia
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Research
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Childhood Cancers(National Cancer Institute)
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Genome Study Points to Treatments for High-Risk Form of Childhood Leukemia(National Cancer Institute)
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More Chemotherapy May Help after Initial Treatment for Childhood Leukemia Fails(National Cancer Institute)
- Study Helps Define Treatment Options in Children with Hard-to-Treat Leukemias(American Cancer Society)
- What's New in Childhood Leukemia Research and Treatment?(American Cancer Society)
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Childhood Cancers
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Journal Articles
References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)
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Dictionaries/Glossaries
- National Marrow Donor Program: Glossary(National Marrow Donor Program)
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Directories
- Find an Oncologist(American Society of Clinical Oncology)
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NCI Designated Cancer Centers(National Cancer Institute)
- Also available in Spanish
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Organizations
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Newsletters/Print Publications
- Latest News(Leukemia & Lymphoma Society)
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Statistics
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Leukemia(National Cancer Institute)
- What Are the Key Statistics for Childhood Leukemia?(American Cancer Society)
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Leukemia
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MedlinePlus Magazine
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Children
- Some Kinds of Cancer Kids Get(Nemours Foundation)
- Also available in Spanish
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Teenagers
- Types of Cancer Teens Get(Nemours Foundation)
- Also available in Spanish
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Patient Handouts
- Acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL)
- Also available in Spanish
- After chemotherapy - discharge
- Also available in Spanish
- Bone marrow biopsy
- Also available in Spanish
- Bone marrow transplant
- Also available in Spanish
- Bone marrow transplant - discharge
- Also available in Spanish
- Chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML)
- Also available in Spanish
- Eating extra calories when you are sick - children
- Also available in Spanish
- Leukemia
- Also available in Spanish
- Return to top
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