What Is Leukemia?

Leukemia is a cancer of the blood or bone marrow. There are different types of leukemia in which different cells are affected. Leukemia occurs when there is an increased number in white blood cells in the blood.

There is no cure for leukemia; however, there are medications that can prolong life. Common drug classes used to treat leukemia are alkylating drugs, antimetabolites, CD20 antibodies, CD33 cytotoxins, CD52 antibodies, human immunoglobulin Gs, interferon alphas, kinase inhibitors, nucleoside metabolic inhibitors, topoisomerase inhibitors, and vinca alkaloids.