Question: Can leukemia be treated with blood transfusion?

Answer: Leukemia cannot be treated with blood transfusion. Blood transfusion is temporarily given only as a symptomatic treatment in patients who experience anemia or pale. Treatment for leukemia primarily depends on several factors including type and severity of leukemia, age and overall health status as well as underlying disease. Common treatments used to fight leukemia include chemotherapy, biological therapy, targeted therapy, radiation and bone marrow and stem cell transplant. Bone marrow and stem cell transplantation, considered as new hope of a cure, helps restoring the body’s ability to produce new blood cells after administration of high-dose chemotherapy and/or radiation. As a result, the chances of being cured from leukemia are considerably high especially in patients who received timely treatment. Certain types of bone marrow transplant include autologous transplant (self-donated), allogeneic transplant using a completely matched donor and “haploidentical transplant or allogeneic transplant using half-matched donor”.