B lymphocytes are supposed to grow into cells that help you fight infections. But in this disease, they turn into "leukemia" cells that live longer than normal cells and reproduce quickly. They build up in your bone marrow and move into your bloodstream. From there they can spread to other organs in your body.
Although in most cases it can't be cured, treatment can help you live longer and better. And researchers are looking for new treatments to fight the disease.
Your symptoms depend on the number of leukemia cells you have. Treatments that kill your leukemia cells also get rid of the symptoms.
When you first get B-cell ALL, you may feel tired and get a fever. You also might lose your appetite and get night sweats.
If the leukemia cells in your bone marrow crowd out cells that are in charge of making blood, you won't have enough normal blood cells. When this happens, you may start feeling weak, dizzy, or light-headed.
Frequent bleeding, such as nosebleeds or from your gums
Some symptoms depend on where in your body the leukemia cells move. For instance, if they travel to your liver and spleen, they may cause these organs to get bigger. Your belly may swell. You might feel full after you eat only a little bit of food.
You may feel pain in your joints or bones if the leukemia cells have spread there. If the cancer cells have moved into the lymph nodes of your neck, underarms, or groin, you may see swelling in those areas.It's not as common, but sometimes the leukemia cells move to the brain and cause headaches or trouble with balance. Leukemia cells that get into your chest may lead to breathing problems.
The word "acute" in B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia means the disease spreads quickly, so it's important to get early treatment.
You have different choices for treatment. In general, your treatment will have three phases. The goal of the first phase is "total remission" -- to kill the leukemia cells and get rid of all your symptoms. Your doctor may call it the induction phase.
Your doctor will do a physical exam and ask you questions about your medical history. They may ask you:
Do you get a lot of nosebleeds or do your gums bleed?
Your doctor may also want you to take some blood tests that can give clues about whether you have B-cell ALL:
Complete blood count (CBC). It checks the number of blood cells in your body, including white blood cells.
Peripheral blood smear. It looks for changes in the number of blood cells and how they look.
The results of these tests can reveal signs that you may have B-cell ALL, such as too many young white blood cells or too few of the two other types of blood cells -- red blood cells and platelets.