Disease progression of acute lymphoblastic leukemia

Cancer cells can spread from where they start to other parts of the body. Leukemia is a cancer of the blood-forming tissue in the bone marrow, and it can develop wherever the blood travels. As a result, acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is often widespread when it is found.

Understanding how a type of cancer usually grows and spreads helps your healthcare team plan your treatment and future care. Leukemia cells usually collect in:

• the peripheral blood and bone marrow
• the lymph nodes
• the brain and spinal cord (called the central nervous system, or CNS)
• the liver
• the spleen
• a joint or along the surface of bones
• the thymus – often affected with T-cell ALL
• the skin, testicles, kidneys or eyes (in rare cases)

Leukemia does not usually form solid tumours in these organs. The buildup of abnormal cells in the organs affects them so they don’t work normally.