Hairy cell leukemia cancer

Hairy cell leukemia is a cancer of the blood and bone marrow. This rare type of leukemia gets worse slowly or does not get worse at all. The disease is called hairy cell leukemia because the leukemia cells look "hairy" when viewed under a microscope. Normally, the bone marrow makes blood stem cells immature cells that become mature blood cells over time.

Hairy cell leukemia is an uncommon hematological malignancy characterized by an accumulation of abnormal B lymphocytes. Hairy cell leukemia was originally described as histiocytic leukemia, malignant reticulosis, or lymphoid myelofibrosis in publications dating back to the s. The disease was formally named leukemic reticuloendotheliosis and its characterization significantly advanced by Bertha Bouroncle and colleagues at The Ohio State University College of Medicine in Its common name, which was coined in , [2] is derived from the "hairy" appearance of the malignant B cells under a microscope. In hairy cell leukemia, the "hairy cells" malignant B lymphocytes accumulate in the bone marrow, interfering with the production of normal white blood cells , red blood cells , and platelets. Consequently, patients may develop infections related to low white blood cell count , anemia and fatigue due to a lack of red blood cells, or easy bleeding due to a low platelet count. Hairy cell leukemia is commonly diagnosed after a routine blood count shows unexpectedly low numbers of one or more kinds of normal blood cells, or after unexplained bruises or recurrent infections in an otherwise apparently healthy patient.

The DNA genetic material of a developing stem cell in the bone marrow is damaged. As a result, the number of healthy blood cells red cells, white cells and platelets is usually lower than normal. Doctors don't know why some cells become hairy cells and others don't. For most people who have hairy cell leukemia, there are no obvious reasons risk factors why they developed the disease.

Here you will find evidence-based information about hairy cell leukemia. Hairy cell leukemia is a chronic and rare form of adult leukemia. While the cause of this malignancy is not known, the origin of the malignant cell is thought to develop from the memory B cell compartment.