Types of Childhood Leukemia

There are different types of leukemia. These types are broadly classified as acute - gets worse quickly - or chronic - gets worse slowly. They are also grouped by the type of white blood cell that is affected: lymphoid or myeloid cells. Although all types of leukemia can occur in children, the most common types are Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia, or ALL, and Acute Myeloid Leukemia, or AML. Adult leukemias (CLL, CML) are very rare in children. Two distinct types of myeloid leukemias are seen in children: JMML and APL.

type (abbr)	full name of the leukemia	% of total leukemias	link to more info on the NCI site
ALL	Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia	about 75%
AML	Acute Myeloid Leukemia	about 20%
JMML	Juvenile myelomonocytic leukemia*	rare
APL	Acute promyelocytic leukemia*	rare
CLL	Chronic Lymphoblastic Leukemia	rare
CML	Chronic Myeloid Leukemia	rare