Staging
There is currently no formal staging system for Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL). Doctors will use tests such as the cancer chromosome changes or your response to therapy to advise you about prognosis. Doctors classify ALL based on whether it is untreated, in remission, or recurrent.
Untreated
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Description
- Untreated ALL includes all newly diagnosed patients who have not yet undergone treatment. These patients may have an abnormal blood count as well as signs and symptoms of ALL.
In Remission
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Description
- This includes all patients who have gone through treatments and put their cancer into remission. In order for the cancer to be considered in remission, the patient must have a normal blood count and no symptoms, and the patient's bone marrow must have less than 5% blasts.
- Morphologic Remission: Blasts less than 5%
- Molecular Remission: No disease among at molecular level
Recurrent
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Description
- Recurrent ALL includes all patients whose cancer has returned after being put into remission. These patients have a different outlook and require different treatments than newly diagnosed patients.
