Chronic lymphocytic leukemia treatment

It is a cancerous disease in which tumor cells proliferate from the blood-forming cells of the bone marrow. CLL begins in the progenitor cells of lymphocytes.

In the chronic variant of lymphoblastic leukemia, the cells are very similar to healthy cells but have a number of differences:

• Don’t perform their protective function as well as healthy leukocytes,
• Have a longer life cycle,
• Grow and multiply faster than normal cells.

Chronic lympholeukemia can go unreported for a long time because of the slow accumulation of tumor cells. However, over time, the abnormal cells displace healthy cells, fill the bone marrow, and enter the blood, liver, and spleen.

CLL is a disease of the elderly. The average age of a patient who is first diagnosed is 70 years old. Men have the disease more often than women. The disease is very rarely diagnosed in patients over 40 years of age, and even more rarely in children.

• The disease more often develops in men,
• 9 out of 10 patients are 50 years old at the time of diagnosis,
• The next of kin of patients diagnosed with CLL have twice the risk of getting the disease,
• The disease is associated with exposure to some pesticides and the herbicide “Agent Orange”.

In Europe, doctors use the Binet system to establish the stage of the disease. The classification is based on determining the number of affected lymphatic areas — spleen, liver and lymph nodes. Also, a decrease in erythrocytes and platelets in the blood is taken into account.

In the first (A) stage, less than three lymphatic zones are affected, without anemia or thrombocytopenia.

In the second (B) stage, more than three sites with lymphoid tissue are involved in the pathological process, no decrease in the number of platelets and erythrocytes is observed.

Doctors talk about stage 3 (C) if the patient develops anemia and/or thrombocytopenia. The number of affected lymphatic zones is not taken into account.

Usually, the disease is discovered accidentally when the doctor orders laboratory blood tests to detect other health problems. Chronic lymphoblastic leukemia is asymptomatic for a long time without bothering the patient.

Symptoms in CLL are usually not specific and may be seen with other diseases:

• Sensation of weakness and increasing fatigue after minor exertion,
• Loss of weight,
• Schills,
• High body temperature,

Increased sweating at night,

• Heat at night,
• Elevated lymph nodes,
• Early feeling of fullness due to compression of the stomach by the spleen or liver.

The vast majority of symptoms are due to the replacement of normal blood cells with leukemia. As a consequence, patients may experience nosebleeds, frequent bacterial infections, and rapid fatigue.

Leukemia blood cells may give an inadequate immune response to the body’s own tissues. This leads to the development of autoimmune diseases. For example, abnormal antibodies can attack red blood cells, leading to the development of autoimmune hemolytic anemia.

When choosing a clinic, it is important to pay attention to such details:

Experienced team of specialists

A team of doctors consisting of a hematologist, medical oncologist, radiotherapist, and surgeon are involved in treating patients. Throughout treatment, other subspecialists may need to be consulted and monitored.

This means that a patient with CLL must be treated at a multidisciplinary medical center, in a specially equipped oncohematology department.

Specialized department

Abroad, treatment of lymphoblastic leukemia is performed in an oncohematology department. Such wards should be equipped with a special air filtration system, since patients are more prone to develop infectious diseases after stem cell transplantation and high-dose chemotherapy.

Modern therapies

Every year, more and more new options for effective treatment open up for patients with cancer. Patients can now be treated with targeted therapies and monoclonal antibodies or participate in research programs for new treatment methods.

Most patients choose clinics in Germany, Turkey, Israel, Spain and South Korea.

We can help you with a choice of clinics. For this you need to leave an application on the MedTour platform.

The final cost of diagnosis depends on a number of factors. The price is affected by:

• Country in which the medical center is located,
• The level of the clinic and international accreditation,
• Doctor qualifications,
• General condition of the patient,
• Patient’s general condition,
• Companion diseases,
• The stage of CLL,
• How diagnosed in the community before the visit to the clinic,
• Patient’s condition.

On average, the cost of diagnosis ranges from $2,500 to $8,000.

We can get you a personalized diagnostic program. Leave an application on our website and attach the results of your diagnostics. A medical coordinator will contact you and answer your questions.

MedTour medical platform helps patients from all over the world to arrange diagnostics and treatment in foreign medical centers. Leave your appeal on our website, and we will definitely contact you.

MedTour staff provides assistance in getting a preliminary answer from the clinic, booking an appointment with the doctor, organizing air flight, transfer, accommodation and escort for the whole period of treatment.

You do not pay anything for our services. You pay for your treatment directly at the clinic.