Leukemia Treatment

Leukemia is a malignant tumor originating from the hematopoietic system, commonly seen in children and the elderly, but it can also affect young and middle-aged adults. Due to abnormal proliferation of white blood cells, normal hematopoietic function is suppressed, leading to anemia, infections, and bleeding. Treatment includes chemotherapy, targeted therapy, cellular immunotherapy, and stem cell transplantation. If treatment is delayed, the disease progresses rapidly, causing organ failure and significantly shortening survival. Standardized and timely treatment is crucial.

Emerging Treatment Methods

Immune Reconstruction Cell Therapy

Immune reconstruction cell therapy enhances the body’s immune recognition ability, targeting and eliminating leukemia cells while repairing immune damage caused by chemotherapy or the disease itself. This therapy emphasizes immune system rebuilding, playing an important role in long-term disease control and relapse prevention, particularly showing benefits in patients who have undergone multiple lines of treatment.

① By reinfusing screened and activated immune cells, this therapy improves clearance of residual lesions and enhances immune activity.

② Used alongside conventional treatments, it helps boost efficacy, delay disease progression, and improve patient performance status.

③ Personalized immune combinations can be designed, making it suitable for various types of leukemia patients, especially those with weakened immune function.

In clinical practice, patients receiving surgery, radiotherapy, or chemotherapy often suffer from immune dysfunction, increased infection risk, and slow recovery. To help patients better tolerate treatment, phased immune reconstruction programs must be scientifically developed for different treatment cycles.

● Short-term plan: Rapidly enhance immunity through immune cell reinfusion to strengthen anti-tumor treatment effects.

● Mid-term plan: Reduce side effects of conventional treatments, promote recovery, and ensure completion of standard treatment courses.

● Long-term plan: Comprehensive improvement of immunity through immune cell reconstruction, gut immunity restoration, elemental immunity rebuilding, and immune nutritional support, thereby enhancing quality of life and prolonging survival.

Conventional Treatment Methods

1. Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy remains the standard treatment for acute leukemia, usually divided into induction and consolidation phases. The induction phase aims to rapidly eliminate leukemia cells and relieve clinical symptoms, while the consolidation phase prevents relapse. Regimens vary and are tailored based on age, subtype, and genetic background.

2. Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation

For high-risk or relapsed patients, hematopoietic stem cell transplantation offers a potentially curative option. By destroying the abnormal hematopoietic system and implanting healthy donor stem cells, hematopoietic function is restored. Allogeneic transplantation is suitable for most types of leukemia, but requires donor matching, involves complex procedures, and places significant physical strain on patients.

3. Targeted Therapy

For specific genetic mutations (such as Philadelphia chromosome-positive leukemia), targeted drugs such as imatinib and dasatinib can effectively inhibit abnormal signaling pathways, reduce proliferation of leukemia cells, and have relatively low side effects. These are particularly suitable for chronic or specific subtypes of leukemia.

4. Minimally Invasive Supportive Therapy

Some supportive procedures use minimally invasive methods during overall treatment, such as central venous catheter implantation for continuous chemotherapy infusion, and bone marrow aspiration under image guidance to enhance safety and comfort. Multidisciplinary cooperation reduces treatment burden and improves compliance.

5. CAR-T Cell Therapy

Some patients with refractory acute lymphoblastic leukemia may consider CAR-T therapy. This approach engineers T cells outside the body to recognize and attack leukemia cells. It has shown promising results, especially in pediatric ALL, but carries risks such as cytokine release syndrome, requiring close monitoring and supportive care.

6. Combined Supportive Therapies

Because leukemia treatment is lengthy, supportive measures such as psychological counseling, nutritional supplementation, infection control, and exercise rehabilitation are essential. A multidisciplinary collaborative approach significantly enhances treatment integrity and patient quality of life.

Conclusion

Experts at United Life International Medical Center remind: Leukemia is not uncontrollable; the key lies in early diagnosis, precise treatment, and systematic management. Combining innovative methods such as immune reconstruction cell therapy with other approaches can provide longer remission and better outcomes. Delays or reliance on a single therapy should be avoided.