Chronic myelogenous leukemia surgery
Overview
Surgery is not the first-line treatment option for patients with chronic myelogenous leukemia. Splenectomy is usually reserved for patients with enlarged spleen and it has no role in curing CML.
Surgery
- The mainstay of treatment for chronic myelogenous leukemia is medical therapy.
- Surgery is indicated for patients with splenomegaly.[1][2]
- Surgery is advised specially if the enlarged spleen is painful, and chemotherapy or radiation therapy does not shrink it.
- The spleen may also be removed to help improve blood cell counts.
Radiation therapy
- Radiation therapy may be used to:[3][4]
- Shrink an enlarged spleen when chemotherapy does not work.
- Treat CML that is metastasized outside the bone marrow.
- Relieve pain caused by the buildup of leukemia cells in the bone marrow.
- Treat the whole body (called as total body irradiation) before a stem cell transplant.
References
- ↑ Wolf DJ, Silver RT, Coleman M (November 1978). “Splenectomy in chronic myeloid leukemia”. Ann. Intern. Med. 89 (5 Pt 1): 684–9. PMID 281164.
- ↑ Castrini G, Pappalardo G (1979). “Splenectomy in early chronic myeloid leukemia”. Int Surg. 64 (6): 21–6. PMID 299444.
- ↑ “Surgery for Chronic Myeloid Leukemia”.
- ↑ Canadian Cancer Society.2015.http://www.cancer.ca/en/cancer-information/cancer-type/leukemia-chronic-myelogenous-cml/treatment/?region=ab
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