According to American Society of Hematology, hematologic disorders (or blood disorders) are diseases which primarily affect the patient’s blood. There are many various kinds of blood disorders. The common groups of hematologic disorders are the following (“Blood Disorders”, 2015):
Hemophilia
Anemia
Blood cancers (myeloma, leukemia, lymphoma)
Blood clots
In this paper we will discuss the pathophysiology of blood cancers. Blood cancers cause the problem with blood cells function and production. The disease starts from the place of blood production - bone marrow. In a healthy organism, bone marrow produces healthy stem cells, which transform into white blood cells, red blood cells or platelets. When a blood cancer of any type affects the blood, the production process of blood cells is changing. Bone marrow starts to produce abnormal blood cells; the number of these cells grows in uncontrolled manner. The cancer cells (abnormal cells) block the main functions of blood such as preventing infections or hemostasis (“Blood Cancers”, 2015).
In the article about blood cancers, American Society of Hematology states that there are three different types of blood cancers: Myeloma, Lymphoma and Leukemia. Myeloma affects plasma cells. White blood cells are the protectors of organism. Their main function is to fight infection. In case of myeloma, white blood cells attack antibodies of diseases. The production of immune cells is lowered and the patient is more vulnerable to different infections. Lymphoma is a disorder of lymphatic system. The organism affected by lymphoma produces abnormal white blood cells (lymphocytes). These cells come in lymph nodes and multiply there. As the disease progresses, the immune system of the body is weakened. Leukemia cells collect in bone marrow and blood. This disorder provokes a significant increase in abnormal white blood cells production. The affected cells are unable to fight infection and they impair bone marrow function to produce other types of blood cells – platelets and red blood cells (“Blood Cancers”, 2015).
References
Blood Cancers. (n.d.). Retrieved July 21, 2015, from http://www.hematology.org/Patients/Cancers/
Blood Disorders. (n.d.). Retrieved July 21, 2015, from http://www.hematology.org/Patients/Blood-Disorders.aspx
