The key difference between leukemia and lymphoma is that leukemia is a blood cancer that occurs in the bone marrow, while lymphoma is a blood cancer that occurs in the lymphatic system.
Blood cancers affect the production and function of the blood cells. There are different types of blood cancers, such as leukaemia, lymphoma, myeloma, myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), and myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPN). Leukemia is the most common type of blood cancer, while lymphoma is a less common type of blood cancer.
CONTENTS
1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Leukemia
3. What is Lymphoma
4. Similarities – Leukemia and Lymphoma
5. Leukemia vs. Lymphoma in Tabular Form
6. Summary – Leukemia vs. Lymphoma
What is Leukemia?
Leukemia is a blood cancer occurring in the bone marrow. It is the most common blood cancer in the United States. It is also the most common cancer among children and teenagers. There are different types of leukemia, such as acute lymphoblastic leukemia, acute myeloid leukemia, chronic lymphocytic leukemia, and chronic myelogenous leukemia. Leukemia cells are normally immature (still developing) white blood cells. Leukemia is most common among people who are aged 65 to 74, typically assigned male at birth (AMAB) and Caucasian/white.
Moreover, common symptoms of leukemia include fatigue, fever or night sweats, shortness of breath, pale skin, frequent infections, unexplained weight loss, bone or joint pain, pain or full feeling under the ribs on the left side, swollen lymph nodes in the underarm, neck, groin or stomach, an enlarged spleen or liver, and bruising easily. Leukemia develops when the DNA of a single cell in the bone marrow changes.
Figure 01: Leukemia
Leukemia can be diagnosed through physical examination, complete blood count, blood cell examination, bone marrow examination, imaging tests such as CT scan, chest X-ray, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan, and lumbar puncture. Furthermore, common treatments for leukemia may include chemotherapy, immunotherapy, targeted therapy, radiation therapy, hematopoietic cell transplant, and chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy.
What is Lymphoma?
Lymphoma is a blood cancer of the lymphatic system. There are different types of lymphoma identified so far, such as Hodgkin lymphoma, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, Waldenstrom macroglobulinemia, follicular lymphoma, B-cell lymphoma, and cutaneous T-cell lymphoma. This condition starts in white blood cells or lymphocytes in the lymphatic system. Moreover, the signs and symptoms of lymphoma may include painless swelling of one/more lymph nodes in the neck, underarm or groin, persistent fatigue, fever, drenching night sweats, shortness of breath (dyspnea), and unexplained weight loss. Lymphoma occurs when the DNA of lymphocytes in the lymphatic system changes (mutate).
Figure 02: Lymphoma
Lymphoma can be diagnosed through physical examination, biopsies, blood tests like complete blood count, and imaging tests such as CT scan, PET scan, and MRI scan. Furthermore, common treatments for lymphoma may include palliative care, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, targeted therapy, immunotherapy, CAR T-cell therapy, and stem cell transplantation.
What are the Similarities Between Leukemia and Lymphoma?
- Leukemia and lymphoma are two different types of blood cancers.
- Both blood cancers affect white blood cells.
- Both are due to DNA mutations.
- They can be diagnosed with physical examination, blood tests, and imaging tests.
- They can be treated through chemotherapy, immunotherapy, targeted therapy, radiation therapy, and transplantation.
What is the Difference Between Leukemia and Lymphoma?
Leukemia is a blood cancer that occurs in bone marrow, while lymphoma is a blood cancer that occurs in the lymphatic system. This is the key difference between leukemia and lymphoma. Furthermore, leukemia is the most common type of blood cancer. On the other hand, lymphoma is a less common type of blood cancer.
The following table summarizes the difference between leukemia and lymphoma.
Summary – Leukemia vs. Lymphoma
Blood cancers specifically affect the functions of blood cells. There are three main types of blood cancers, including lymphoma, leukemia, and myeloma. Leukemia is the most common type of blood cancer, while lymphoma is a less common type of blood cancer. Furthermore, leukemia is a blood cancer that occurs in bone marrow, while lymphoma is a blood cancer that occurs in the bone marrow. This summarizes the difference between leukemia and lymphoma.
Reference:
1. “Leukemia: Symptoms, Signs, Causes, Types & Treatment.” Cleveland Clinic.
2. “Lymphoma.” Mayo Clinic, Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research.
Image Courtesy:
1. “Leukemia Cells” By NIH Image Gallery (CC BY-NC 2.0 DEED) via Flickr
2. “Cutaneous T-cell lymphoma – high mag” By Nephron – Own work (CC BY-SA 3.0) via Commons Wikimedia