What is AML
Acute Myeloid Leukemia is a disease characterized by abnormal growth of undifferentiated myeloid precursors, i.e., bone marrow stem cells that give rise to different types of blood cells including white blood cells, red blood cells, and platelets.
In the context of AML, myeloid precursors may undergo genetic abnormalities or mutations that cause abnormal growth and multiplication. These immature and abnormal myeloid cells accumulate in the bone marrow and can invade the bloodstream, causing the symptoms of AML.
At what age does it occur
The prevalence of AML varies with age. It is relatively rare in children, accounting for about 15-20% of all childhood leukemia cases. Its incidence peaks in the first 2 years of life and then declines, with a second, lower peak during adolescence. Thereafter, the incidence of AML increases with age and is most frequently diagnosed in adults older than 60 years.
The incidence of this disease is estimated to be about 1.54 cases per 100,000 people and about 110 cases per 100,000 among adults over 65.
What features does it have
AML is a heterogeneous disease: clinical manifestations can vary widely, and important molecular differences have been found in genetic abnormalities and mutations associated with its onset. This heterogeneity, together with the high relapse rate, is thought to be responsible for the relatively low five-year overall survival, which remains around 70% for childhood AML.
What can be done
There is considerable and concrete interest in knowing in depth and detail the mechanisms underlying the heterogeneity of AML: this is indispensable to the development of specific treatments, targeted to groups of patients with common features of the disease, and could also pave the way for disease prevention actions.
In the face of this interest, however, difficulties – of various kinds, including economic ones – due to the low frequency of AML must be considered, especially where the disease is broken down into different subtypes of manifestation at an early age.
In particular, for particularly aggressive cases of AML similar to Francesca‘s, described as sporadic, reliable case histories are not even available.
