Childhood Cancer

Childhood Leukemia

Types of Leukemia

The two broad classifications of leukemia are acute (rapid progression) and chronic (slow progression). The two forms of acute leukemia are acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and acute myeloid leukemia (AML). More than 95% of all childhood cancers are acute, with the majority being ALL.

The two types of chronic leukemia in children are chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) and juvenile myelomonocytic leukemia (JMML), and they account for less than 5% of all children diagnosed with leukemia. The following table shows the types of childhood leukemia and the percentages of each type.

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The types of childhood leukemia are explained in detail in Chapter 3, Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia; Chapter 4, Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Chapter 5, Juvenile Myelomonocytic Leukemia; and Chapter 6, Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia.