September is recognised as Blood Cancer Awareness Month to support those who have been affected by the disease & raise funding for blood cancer research, and disseminate awareness. Leukaemia, lymphoma, and myeloma are the three main kinds of blood cancer. In the US, about 1.3 million persons with blood cancer are either in remission or receiving therapy. There has been significant progress in treatment throughout time, which has raised survival rates, but more work remains. Multiple Myeloma: Know More About Kahler's Disease, a Type of Blood Cancer, Its Symptoms, Causes and Treatment.

Blood Cancer Awareness Month History

It is essential to increase fundraising efforts and public awareness of blood cancer during Blood Cancer Awareness Month. As a result of this ongoing effort, survival rates have climbed by 25% since the mid-1970s. September was declared as Blood Cancer Awareness Month by Congress in 2010. In the US, an estimated 14,000 people receive a blood cancer diagnosis each month. Even after the first-generation chemotherapy medications were launched in the middle of the 1950s, blood cancer has always been a difficult problem to solve. The discovery of x-rays and radiation therapy in the early 20th century was the first step toward bridging the prevention and early detection gaps that have always existed in the fight against the disease. The five-year survival rate for leukaemia has quadrupled since the 1960s thanks to improvements in technology and treatment methods that have aided in early illness detection.

Blood Cancer Facts

  • Every nine minutes, a person in the US passes away from blood cancer.

  • In the United States, it was anticipated that 58,640 people would die from leukaemia in 2020.

  • 66% of those who are diagnosed with leukaemia live for five years or more, according to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.

  • There are currently no efficient early detection screening programmes.

Importance of Blood Cancer Awareness Month

Leukaemia, lymphoma, and myeloma are the three main kinds of blood cancer that have been identified today. Although better care and facilities made possible by medical developments have raised patient survival rates, the appropriate remedy still eluded us, therefore there is still a long way to go.

Lymphoma is the most common blood cancer, accounting for about half of all blood cancer infections in the US in 2021. And one person is diagnosed with a blood cancer of any kind every three minutes on average in the US; globally, the rate is considerably higher.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Aug 30, 2022 10:52 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).