leukemia

     

Leukemia or leukaemia (Greek leukos λευκός, "white"; aima αίμα, "bloo") is a cancer of the blood or bone marrow and is characterized by an abnormal proliferation (production by multiplication) of blood cells, usually white blood cells (leukocytes). Leukemia is a broad term covering a spectrum of diseases. In turn, it is part of the even broader group of diseases called hematological neoplasms.

Trivia about leukemia

  • The name of this disease comes from Greek words for "white" & "blood"
  • Nobel laureate Gertrude Elion helped develop drugs to treat herpes, gout & this, cancer of the bone marrow
  • Gertrude Elion created drugs that aided kidney transplants & a drug that fights this cancer of the blood & marrow
  • CLL is the chronic lymphocytic type of this cancer
  • (Jimmy of the Clue Crew looks into a microscope.) You can see why a form of this cancerous disease in which the body makes too many lymphocytes is called "hairy cell"
  • The this & Lymphoma Society is a charity fighting blood cancers