Publication details
Chronická lymfocytární leukemie
| Title in English | Chronic lymphocytic leukemia |
|---|---|
| Authors | |
| Year of publication | 2015 |
| Type | Chapter of a book |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Description | CLL, the most common leukemia in western population, is a monoclonal disorder characterized by a progressive accumulation of functionally incompetent lymphocytes. For the diagnosis, the most important is complete blood count and flowcytometry of peripheral blood. Additional tests including novel prognostic factors and imaging methods are usually recommended prior to initiation of treatment. The clinical course of CLL ranges from very indolent, with a nearly normal life expectancy, to rapidly progressive leading to death and occasionally undergoing transformation to aggressive lymphoma, known as Richter syndrome (RS). At presentation, several clinical and biologic features may help to predict, at least in part, the clinical course of CLL. These new prognostic factors might contribute to choose the best treatment options as in the last few years, several new, highly efficiant drugs have become a part of the routine clinical practice. There are several treatment possibilities - patients-who are asymptomatic usually do not require any treatment and we prefer watch and wait strategy. All patients who require therapy ouhght to be sent to a specialized hematological centre and if eligible, they should be offered a participation in one of the clinical trials. Despite all novel therapeutic agents, CLL remains incurable disease. Therefore, in young, fit individuals, the allogeneic stem cell transplantation should always be considered. |