| Definition |
Central Nervous System (brain) is a site that chemotherapy drugs can not penetrate. This part of body, as a result, becomes a reservoir for leukemia cells. Without adequate treatment, up to two thirds of ALL patients will have a leukemic relapse in their brain. Common approaches to this problem are: Radiation therapy to brain and spinal canal and injection of chemotherapy drugs, Methotrexate or Ara-C, into the Spinal Fluid using a Lumbar Puncture (intrathecal chemotherapy). This portion of treatment is synchronized with the rest of chemotherapy in the first few months of treatment.
Spread of leukemia cells to the central nervous system (CNS) at the time of initial diagnosis is seen in 10% to 12% of patients with AML, and about twice as often as in ALL. Headache, poor school performance, weakness, seizures, vomiting, difficulty in maintaining balance, and blurred vision can be symptoms of CNS leukemia.
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