Haematology & OncologyPending review

Acute Leukaemia

A malignant clone of immature blast cells expands rapidly in the bone marrow and crowds out normal blood production, so the clinical picture is a predictable marrow failure triad (anaemia, infection and bleeding) appearing over days to weeks.

In a nutshell

A blocked-maturation clone of blast cells crowds the marrow, so anaemia, infection and bleeding appear together as a predictable triad. Onset is rapid (days to weeks), demanding same-day referral, and subtype is defined by immunophenotype and cytogenetics.

Classic presentation

A patient presents over days to weeks with fatigue and pallor, recurrent infections or persistent fever, and easy bruising or petechiae, with blasts seen on a blood film.

Key points

The marrow failure triad (anaemia, infection, bleeding) follows directly from blasts crowding out all three normal lineages together.

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Educational content pending clinical review. Not medical advice.