Blood cancer is a term that’s used to describe many different types of cancer that can affect your blood, bone marrow or lymphatic system. It happens when something goes wrong with the development of your blood cells. The most common types of blood cancer are:
Leukaemia is a blood cancer. It affects the white blood cells, which are a really important part of the immune system that fights infection. Around 7,600 adults are diagnosed with leukaemia in the UK every year. There are many forms of Leukaemia that affect both children and adults.
Lymphoma is also a blood cancer, usually appearing as a solid tumour in the lymph nodes of the neck, chest, armpit and groin. Around 11,700 people are diagnosed with lymphoma in the UK every year, making this the most common form of blood cancer.
Myeloma is cancer of the bone marrow and mainly affects people aged 65 and over. Around 3,750 people are diagnosed with myeloma in the UK every year.
More than 5,300 people are diagnosed with rare forms of blood cancers in the UK every year. The most common of these are aplastic anaemia, the myeloproliferative neoplasms and the myeldysplastic syndromes.
Further information about Blood Cancers and a donation facility may be found here:
