Leukemia
Causes
Leukemia is more often occurs in males than in females and
in white population more than black. The actual causes of leukemia is unknown
but research has found certain risk factors that increase a person's chance
of developing leukemia.
The rick factors are
:
- Exposure to high doses of radiation such as by atomic bomb explosions (such
as those in Japan during World War II) and nuclear power plant accidents (such
as the Chernobyl accident in 1986). Also in medical treatment using radiation
therapy.
- Exposure to electromagnetic fields.
- Genetic disorders like Fanconi anemia, Schwachman-Diamond syndrome and Down
syndrome.
- Workers exposed to certain chemicals like benzene, formaldehyde over a long
period of time can cause leukemia
- People with myelodysplasic syndrome (a blood disorder) are at increased
risk of developing acute myeloid leukemia.
- Some cancer-fighting drugs used in the treatment of other types of cancer
sometimes later develop leukemia
- Human T-cell leukemia virus-I (HTLV-I) can causes human T-cell leukemia
- Smoking is also a risk factor.
|
|
