How can you reduce the risk of childhood leukemia?

Most children with leukemia have no known risk factors, so there is no sure way to prevent these leukemias from developing. Some leukemias result from treating cancers with radiation and chemotherapy, or the use of immune-suppressing drugs to avoid rejection of transplanted organs.

How does exposure to benzene affect the risk of leukemia?

Benzene has been shown to cause chromosome changes in bone marrow cells in the lab. (The bone marrow is where new blood cells are made.) Such changes are commonly found in human leukemia cells.

How can leukemia be prevented?

They include:

1. Quit smoking. Smoking increases your risk of multiple types of cancer, including leukemia.
2. Maintain a moderate weight. Having obesity is another risk for leukemia that you can control.
3. Avoid breathing in certain chemicals. The chemicals benzene and formaldehyde are known to increase your risk of leukemia.

How does the body get rid of benzene?

Instead, try to cut off the clothing and remove it from your body as quickly as possible. Wash yourself and your skin with warm soap and water. Flush out any benzene that might be in the mouth or eyes for at least fifteen minutes.

Who is susceptible to leukemia?

Leukemia is most frequently diagnosed in people 65 to 74 years of age. Leukemia is more common in men than in women, and more common in Caucasians than in African-Americans. Although leukemia is rare in children, of the children or teens who develop any type of cancer, 30\% will develop some form of leukemia.

What are the risks of leukemia?

Who is at risk for leukemia?

• Smoking. People who smoke are more likely to get acute myeloid leukemia (AML) than people who do not smoke.
• Exposure to certain chemicals.
• Chemotherapy in the past.
• Radiation exposure.
• Rare congenital diseases.
• Certain blood disorders.
• Family history.
• Age.

How benzene causes leukemia?

Benzene works by causing cells not to work correctly. For example, it can cause bone marrow not to produce enough red blood cells, which can lead to anemia. Also, it can damage the immune system by changing blood levels of antibodies and causing the loss of white blood cells.

Why do kids get leukemia?

The exact cause of most childhood leukemias is not known. Most children with leukemia do not have any known risk factors. Still, scientists have learned that certain changes in the DNA inside normal bone marrow cells can cause them to grow out of control and become leukemia cells.

How do babies develop leukemia?

The exact cause of leukemia in children is not known. There are certain conditions passed on from parents to children (inherited) that increase the risk for childhood leukemia. But, most childhood leukemia is not inherited. Researchers have found changes (mutations) in genes of the bone marrow cells.

Does benzene cause leukemia?

The Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) has determined that benzene causes cancer in humans. Long-term exposure to high levels of benzene in the air can cause leukemia, cancer of the blood-forming organs.

What is the permissible exposure limit for benzene?

1 ppm
OSHA: The legal airborne permissible exposure limit (PEL) is 1 ppm averaged over an 8-hour workshift and 5 ppm, not to be exceeded during any 15-minute work period.

Does benzene exposure increase the risk of leukemia?

Rates of leukemia, particularly acute myeloid leukemia (AML), have been found to be higher in studies of workers exposed to high levels of benzene, such as those in the chemical, shoemaking, and oil refining industries.

What are the causes of leukemia?

Exposure to cancer-causing agents. People exposed to high doses of radiation (from the explosion of an atomic bomb, working in an atomic weapons plant, or a nuclear reactor accident) have a heightened risk of developing leukemia. Long-term exposure to high levels of solvents such as benzene — in the workplace, for example — is a known risk factor.

How are people exposed to benzene?

People are exposed to benzene primarily by breathing air that contains the chemical. Workers in industries that produce or use benzene may be exposed to the highest levels of the chemical, although federal and state regulations have reduced these exposures in recent decades.

Is there a link between childhood leukemia and adult leukemia?

Some studies have also suggested links to childhood leukemia (particularly AML) as well as acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL), chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), and other blood-related cancers (such as multiple myeloma and non-Hodgkin lymphoma) in adults.