English Paper
English 9
Apr 17, 2025
Acute Myeloid Leukemia
Imagine you’re a healthy kid getting ready for a wrestling tournament and you start feeling tired, painful, and emotional. There are many different types of childhood cancers, but I am going to focus on Acute Myeloid Leukemia. I was the one who got diagnosed with AML. I believe that Acute Myeloid Leukemia is a type of cancer that has many highs and lows.
Acute Myeloid Leukemia(AML) is a type of cancer of the blood. AML starts when the bone marrow in the body becomes overcrowded with abnormal cells, which creates no room for the healthy cells. Children can experience many different symptoms before getting diagnosed. A few of the most common symptoms are fever, night sweats, paleness, tiredness, and headaches. When I got diagnosed, I was feeling cold, tired, having headaches, and feeling very weak. As stated in the Childhood Leukemia Guide, “approximately 730 children between the ages of 0 and 19 are diagnosed with AML in the United States each year.” I am one of the 730 diagnosed children this year.
Doctors treat children in cycles of treatment called phases. The phases are called induction, intensification, consolidation, and continuation. Depending on the risk level of AML, some of these phases could be given more than once. The goal during treatment is to reach remission, but even if you reach remission, treatment is still needed to kill any remaining cancer cells. I am currently on my first phase of intensification. Many people don’t realize this, but the hospital stay during these phases is usually one month. During this time chemotherapy is given, some people need blood transfusions, blood counts drop, and recover.
A fact that I found interesting is that if one identical twin develops AML as an infant, the risk of the other twin getting AML is almost 100% likely. This happens because the Leukemia cells are shared during fetal development. If they are fraternal twins, they have a lower risk of developing AML if their twin already has it. One very important thing to remember as a parent and a child is that there is nothing they did or didn't do to cause AML.
The prognosis for AML is very different for every person. The right treatment is determined by the child and the leukemia cells. As stated in the Childhood Leukemia Guide, “Treatment for AML has dramatically improved in the last two decades. Today, 85 to 90% of children who receive optimal treatment at a major Children's Hospital receive remission.” My team of doctors have made a plan for me to receive 5 months of treatment in the hopes of being cancer-free.
In conclusion, AML is a type of cancer that both children and adults can get. Each diagnosis has a different outcome from others, but cancer is a lifelong journey. There is new research being developed to help treat and cure cancer, but also to teach people what to look for. The phases/treatments that you go through make you feel worn out and tired. It affects your physical, emotional, and your mental health. Acute Myeloid Leukemia is a type of cancer that has many highs and lows. Having a positive support system is helpful throughout your journey of AML.