Table of Contents What Is Leukemia? Normal/Leukemia Cells Types of Leukemia Leukemia Symptoms Diagnosis of Leukemia Leukemia Treatment Getting a Second Opinion Methods of Leukemia Treatment Leukemia Clinical Trials Supportive Care Side Effects of Leukemia Treatment Leukemia Treatment with Chemotherapy Leukemia Treatment with Radiation Therapy Leukemia Treatment with Bone Marrow Transplants Nutrition for Leukemia Cancer Patients Followup Care Support for Leukemia Patients What the Future Holds Possible Causes of Leukemia Keeping on Top of Your Condition

Leukemia Treatment with Chemotherapy

The side effects of chemotherapy depend mainly on the drugs the patient receives. In addition, as with other types of treatment, side effects may vary from person to person. Generally, anticancer drugs affect dividing cells. Cancer cells divide more often than healthy cells and are more likely to be affected by chemotherapy. Still, some healthy cells also may be damaged. Healthy cells that divide often, including blood cells, cells in hair roots, and cells in the digestive tract, are likely to be damaged. When chemotherapy affects healthy cells, it may lower patients' resistance to infection, and patients may have less energy and may bruise or bleed easily. They may lose their hair. The also may have nausea, vomiting, and mouth sores. Most side effects go away gradually during the recovery periods between treatments or after treatment stops.

Some anticancer drugs can affect a patient's fertility. Women's menstrual periods may become irregular or stop, and women may have symptoms of menopause, such as hot flashes and vaginal dryness. Men may stop producing sperm. Because these changes may be permanent, some men choose to have their sperm frozen and stored. Most children treated for leukemia appear to have normal fertility when they grow up. However, depending on the drugs and doses used and on the age of the patient, some boys and girls may not be able to have children when they mature.