New Models of Therapy: When Acute Leukemia Becomes Chronic

Leukocyte disorders can lead to either leukopenia, characterized by an abnormally low leukocyte count, or leukocytosis, marked by a very high leukocyte number.
Leukopenia may result from bone marrow disorders, autoimmune diseases, and infectious diseases. For example, conditions such as multiple myeloma and aplastic anemia can impair the bone marrow's ability to produce adequate leukocytes. Similarly, autoimmune diseases like lupus and viral infections such as HIV can prompt the immune...

Tumor progression is a phenomenon where the pre-formed tumor acquires successive mutations to become clinically more aggressive and malignant. In the 1950s, Foulds first described the stepwise progression of cancer cells through successive stages.
Colon cancer is one of the best-documented examples of tumor progression. Early mutation in the APC gene in colon cells causes a small growth on the colon wall called a polyp. With time, this polyp grows into a benign, pre-cancerous tumor. Further...

Bone marrow transplant is a potential cure for several diseases, including cancer and specific genetic disorders. Notably, this procedure is applicable for patients suffering from aplastic anemia, certain types of leukemia, severe combined immunodeficiency disease (SCID), Hodgkin's disease, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, multiple myeloma, thalassemia, sickle-cell disease, and certain cancers.
The transplant begins with high doses of chemotherapy and radiation treatment, which aim to destroy...

Commitment is the  process whereby stem cells:

Common myeloid progenitors (CMPs) are oligopotent cells that can differentiate into granulocytes and macrophages. Granulocytes and macrophages are essential for protecting the body against bacterial, viral, or fungal infections. They migrate from the bone marrow into the circulating blood to reach specific tissue sites where they differentiate and help in immune surveillance. However, they survive only for a few days and must be continuously made available to the organism to maintain a robust...

Retroviruses are RNA viruses that have been shown to cause cancers in diverse species, including chickens, mice, cats, and monkeys. The RNA genomes of these viruses are first reverse-transcribed into single and then double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) copies. This dsDNA called proviral DNA then integrates into the host genome. Subsequently, the host cell transcribes the proviral DNA in concert with the chromosomal DNA. This leads to the production of viral RNA and proteins that assemble at the host...