Leukemia Leukemia kills more children under the age of 15 than any other disease in the United States. But leukemia isn't just a disease of the young. Adults get leukemia too. The American Cancer Society says it can be chronic or acute.
Acute leukemia progresses quickly.
It causes an accumulation of immature cells in the marrow and blood and as a result, the marrow can no longer produce enough normal red and white blood cells and platelets. NCI says chronic leukemia progresses more slowly and permits greater numbers of more mature, functional cells to be made. Leukemia is also categorized by the cell type involved, either myelogenous or lymphocytic. NCI says no one is sure of the exact causes of leukemia, although chronic exposure to benzene as well as excessive doses of irradiation have been linked to certain cases. Researchers at the National Institutes of Health do know that survival rates for leukemia have been improving.