A diagnosis of secondary acute myeloid leukemia (sAML) can be overwhelming. Here are the basics about sAML that are important to understand.

AML is a blood cancer in which the bone marrow makes too many abnormal white blood cells called myeloblasts, red blood cells or platelets.¹ There are different types of AML, based on how mature the myeloblasts are at the time of diagnosis and how different they are from normal cells.¹

It can be difficult to pinpoint an exact cause of AML in each individual.² A diagnosis of sAML constitutes approximately 30% of AML cases.^3,4 sAML may be linked to specific preexisting conditions, like myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), or to prior treatment for a malignant or non-malignant disease.⁵

• Therapy-related AML (t-AML): t-AML makes up approximately 4 to 10% of all AML cases, occurring as a result of prior treatment with chemotherapy or radiation for an unrelated cancer.^3-5 Cases of t-AML can develop two to ten years after completion of treatment for a previous cancer.^6-10
• AML with myelodysplasia-related changes (AML-MRC): AML-MRC accounts for approximately 25% of AML cases, and it occurs when a person has abnormal bone marrow cells as a result of prior blood disorders.^3,5 In these cases, the bone marrow not only has an unusually high number of myeloblasts, but also possesses many other abnormal cells caused by a prior condition such as myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) or myelodysplastic/myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPNs), where the bone marrow makes too many blood cells.^5,11

The type of sAML you have will inform your treatment plan, so it’s important to discuss subtype testing with your doctor.