Question: what causes blood cancer

Shillah Simiyu answered on 15 May 2018:

Blood cancer refers to any number of different types of cancer that affect the blood. Our blood is made of many different types of blood cells, which are made in the bone marrow in the middle of our bones. There are three main types of blood cells, including red blood cells (which carry oxygen), platelets (which help blood to clot), and white blood cells (which fight infections).

When blood cancer occurs, normal blood cell development is affected by the uncontrolled growth of an abnormal kind of blood cell. These cancerous cells stop your blood from performing the functions it’s supposed to do, like fighting infections or clotting your blood when cut.

There are 3 types of blood cancers:
Blood cancer refers to any number of different types of cancer that affect the blood. Our blood is made of many different types of blood cells, which are made in the bone marrow in the middle of our bones. There are three main types of blood cells, including red blood cells (which carry oxygen), platelets (which help blood to clot), and white blood cells (which fight infections).

When blood cancer occurs, normal blood cell development is affected by the uncontrolled growth of an abnormal kind of blood cell. These cancerous cells stop your blood from performing the functions it’s supposed to do, like fighting infections or clotting your blood when cut.

There are 3 types of blood cancers:
1.Leukaemia happens when your leukocytes (white blood cells) become cancerous.
2.Lymphoma happens when your lymphocytes (a certain type of white blood cell) become cancerous.
3. Myeloma happens when your plasma cells (a type of B lymphocyte) become cancerous

These ‘risk factors’ include:

-age,
-sex,
-ethnicity,
-family history,
-radiation or chemical exposure, and
-some health conditions and treatments.

The risk factors vary between the different types of blood cancer. For example, we know that myeloma only affects adults and is much more common in men and people from an African-Caribbean background, whereas Hodgkin lymphoma usually develops in people aged 15-25 or over 50, and people who already have problems with their immune system.