From AML diagnosis to treatment, we're here to help.
Acute myeloid leukemia (AML), also known as acute myelogenous leukemia, is a fast-growing blood cancer. In AML, the body makes unhealthy blood-making cells (stem cells) that don’t work well. These cells grow quickly in the bone marrow and prevent the marrow from making healthy red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets. With fewer healthy blood cells, the body can’t fight infections or stop bleeding.
AML can get worse quickly without treatment. The first part of treatment is induction chemotherapy (chemo). The goal of induction chemo is to make the AML go away (also called remission). Unfortunately, without more treatment the AML is likely to come back (relapse). The second part of treatment is consolidation. Consolidation could be more chemo or a blood or marrow transplant (BMT). The goal here can be to delay or even prevent relapse.
Your doctor will test the AML cells for biomarkers. These tests can tell them if the AML has higher or lower risk of relapse. If the AML has a higher risk of relapse, then it's more important to consider a BMT. BMT can be a cure for AML, but there are serious risks.
For every part of your treatment, you have two main options: standard treatment or treatment in a clinical trial. Ask your doctor what clinical trials may be an option for you.
As you go through treatment for AML, we know it can feel overwhelming. The Be The Match® Patient Support Center can help you navigate and cope with your diagnosis, treatment and recovery.
Support for you and your loved ones
We can help you and your loved ones:
- Answer questions about your diagnosis and treatment options
- Cope with uncertainty
- Access financial grants
- Access educational resources including fact sheets, booklets and webinars
- Get answers about the transplant process
- Find and join clinical trials
- Connect with others who have been diagnosed with AML
Having as much information as possible on your treatment options for AML will help you and your doctor make the best treatment decisions for you. We’ve outlined some of our key resources below.
| Educational Resources: | AML Treatment Conversation Guide Transplant and AML Fact Sheet An Introduction to Allogeneic BMT Counseling Services |
|---|---|
| Videos: | Basics of Blood and Marrow Transplant |
| Clinical Trial Search: | Clinical Trials Search & Support |
| Additional Information on AML: | The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society |
Connect with us
Our goal is to help you get the support you need, when you need it throughout your treatment journey. Contact our Patient Support Center for confidential, free, one-on-one support.
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“We can take all the time needed to help you and your loved ones navigate your AML treatment journey. Call us with any questions. If we don’t have the answer, we’ll find it for you.”
—Maria MacWilliams, OPN-CG, Senior BMT Patient Navigator,
Bilingual
Request a connection with a BMT Patient Navigator
Call 1 (888) 999-6743 (Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. Central Time)
Email
your questions to patientinfo@nmdp.org
Patients and their treatment journeys
Be The Match supports hundreds of people with AML and their family members each year, from providing one-on-one support to helping find their life-saving donor.
Meet Hank
Hank was diagnosed with AML later in life. As an older gentleman, he was unsure about the possibility transplant due to his age - he was 74 at the time. Hank’s oncologist noted his overall good health and advocated on his behalf with the treatment team. The team agreed that a low-dose chemo process for older adults was a good option for Hank and his care was transferred to his local transplant center.
Hank got a transplant in late 2017. Today, he is feeling great, off all transplant-related medication and doesn’t have serious complications, like graft-versus-host disease (GVHD). He is back to doing the normal life things including walks and lifting weights to stay healthy. In his words, “The treatment was arduous, but it was very tolerable. The treatment worked. It was absolutely worth it in terms of more years of life and not only that but with peace of mind.”
Hank’s message to other patients: reach out for support and education to know the options you have and how to talk to your doctor about them.
_–_Patient_Support/Hank_3 years after.JPG "Hank")
Meet Sean
Sean was diagnosed with leukemia at the age of 21, while enrolled as a full-time student at Florida Gulf Coast and completing an internship. He started noticing bruising around his body and getting severe headaches, so he went to the doctor, who did bloodwork, and he got the call that he may have leukemia. His boyfriend (now fiancé) drove him 2 hours home to be closer to his mom. After 6 months in the hospital, Sean received a transplant in early 2019 and is now healthy, back to school and planning to graduate this year (despite the pandemic). Late last year, Sean got to meet his life-saving donor. Take a look.