Leukemia Channel
Topics
Medications
Quicklinks
Related Channels
Early Symptoms of Leukemia
Chronic leukemia includes such types of the disease as chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). In the early stages of chronic leukemia, the leukemia cells function almost normally. Therefore, there may be no early symptoms of leukemia. In most cases, doctors will find chronic leukemia during a routine checkup before there are any symptoms. When symptoms of CLL do appear, they are generally mild at first and progress gradually.
Common symptoms of chronic leukemia include:
- Feeling very tired
- Weight loss for no known reason
- Night sweats
- Fever
- Pain or a feeling of fullness below the ribs on the left side.
An infection or another problem could also cause what appear to be early symptoms of leukemia. Therefore, people with possible early symptoms of leukemia should see a doctor as soon as possible -- only a doctor can make a leukemia diagnosis and treat the problem.
Written by/reviewed by: Arthur Schoenstadt, MD
Last reviewed by: Arthur Schoenstadt, MD