What You Should Know About Chronic Myelomonocytic Leukemia (CMML)
Saturday, June 20th, 2009
Chronic Myelomonocytic Leukemia (CMML)
CMML Incidence:
CMML affects approximately 3 out of 100,000 individuals in the United States each year. The median age at diagnosis ranges from 65 to 75 years. Seventy-five percent of patients are older than 60 years at the time of diagnosis. CMML has been reported in a small number of older children and younger adults. There are approximately twice as many male CMML patients as female CMML patients.
Signs and Symptoms of CMML:
Signs and symptoms may include
- Weakness and fatigue due to “anemia” (a decrease below normal in the number of red cells
and, consequently, in the hemoglobin concentration of the blood)
- Petechiae (pinhead-sized sites of bleeding in the skin), bruising and bleeding due to“thrombocytopenia” (low platelet counts)
- Infections due to “leukopenia” (a below-normal concentration of white cells)
- Enlargement of the spleen and/or liver
- Feeling of fullness below the ribs due to spleen enlargement.
