Types of Childhood Cancer: Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL)

What is ALL?

Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is a cancer of the white blood cell that normally fights infection. The cells do not grow and develop properly, filling up the bone marrow inside bones, where blood is normally made. ALL is the most common type of childhood cancer, accounting for 35% of all cancers in children. Each year, there about 2,900 new cases of children and adolescents diagnosed with ALL in the United States alone. Its signs and symptoms resemble other common illnesses, leading to other treatments before diagnosis.

What are the signs and symptoms of ALL?

• A low number of red blood cells that lead to anemia – child feels tired or weak, experiences shortness of breath or looks pale


• A low number of white blood cells that fight infection – child gets fevers or infections that are hard to treat


• A low number of platelets that control bleeding – child’s cuts heals slowly, he/she easily bleeds or gets bruised


• A high number of leukemia cells – child experiences bone pain and swelling of the joints

How is research funded by The St. Baldrick’s Foundation helping to fight this type of cancer?

Dr. Charles Mullighan, St. Baldrick’s Scholar at St. Jude Research Hospital said, “We know that this cancer is a genetic disease, that is, changes in DNA help turn a normal infection-fighting white blood cell into a cancer cell, but until recently we have not had the tools to find all of these changes.

My work attempts to do two things: to use the best available genetic testing approaches to find all the genetic changes that make a cell a cancer cell, and to then use laboratory testing to work out how these genetic changes influence the behavior of a cell. We have found many new genetic changes and have shown that several of these help cause leukemia and influence the chance of the leukemia responding to therapy.”

How is YOUR support making a difference?

“St. Baldrick’s has provided critical support for my childhood cancer research here at St. Jude. It funded a highly speculative research project to look at the genetic basis of a very aggressive subtype of ALL (hypodiploid ALL) about which little was known. The study could have yielded little, but has proven exceptionally informative beyond our highest hopes.” –Charles Mullighan, MD

Read the childhood cancer journey of one of our 2012 Ambassador Kids, Emily, who was diagnosed with ALL when she was six years old.