What is chronic myeloid leukemia?
Chronic myeloid leukemia is also known as chronic myelogenous leukemia or CML. This is a myeloproliferative disorder, a type of skin cancer that features excess granulocytes in the blood. Granulocytes are immune cells, also known as polymorphonuclear leukocytes. They activate during infection and become the first line of defense when the body needs to fight pathogens. However, in chronic myeloid leukemia, these granulocytes are immature and do not activate properly. Thus, they only take space, create metabolic alterations, and contribute to immune and hematological problems instead of defending the body against disease.
Chronic myeloid leukemia is not rare, and 20% of the diagnosis in adults end up being CML. According to the American Cancer Society, the incidence of this disease has been increasing by 1.8% every year, and it was estimated that 8990 people were being diagnosed with CML in 2019. The condition is characterized to be insidious and slowly progressive, but it is similar to other types of leukemia, and diagnosis is critical to start treatment.