Combined treatment of leukemia - modern technologies
Treatment of blood cancer is one of the most popular types of treatment abroad. This is due to the fact that these diseases are very poorly treated, and with a lack of innovations in this area in Russia, and with the complexity of treatment. Usually, "blood cancer" is called leukemia for a similar mechanism of formation: in the bone marrow, unchanged reproduce the altered cells.
As a result, the blood quantity of one type of cells increases dramatically, they do not perform the necessary functions and interfere with healthy cells. Allocate different forms of leukemia - depending on which cells began to grow uncontrollably. Also leukemia is divided into acute and chronic. With acute leukemia, blasts predominate in the blood - immature blood cells, the disease flows very quickly, giving rise to heat and many other disorders.
With chronic leukemias, mature cells predominate, they suffer from chronic leukemia for a long time, they can be asymptomatic for a long time, manifested by increased fatigue, frequent colds and general weakness. Quite often, chronic leukemia is detected accidentally.
The main ways to diagnose leukemia in Israel is to study blood and bone marrow. General and biochemical blood analysis, coagulation, cytological analysis of cells taken from puncture from the sternum or iliac bone, cytogenetics and immunophenotyping of pathological blood cells, as well as consultations of hematologists and tomography of the abdominal and thoracic organs are required.
The main way to treat leukemia is chemotherapy. It includes three stages: induction( intensive treatment for 1 month, aimed at suppressing the exacerbation), consolidation( lasts 2-8 months, aimed at reducing the number of remaining cells) and supporting( lasts 2-3 years, aimed at preventing relapses).Radiation therapy, targeted therapy( treatment by introducing special monoclonal antibodies that act only on altered cells) and their combinations are also used.
In case if drugs are not enough, in Israel they perform a bone marrow transplant. A variety of types of operations are performed, transplantation is possible from both a relative and an outside donor.
Using the most modern techniques and combined methods of treatment, an increasing number of patients give a chance to restore health.