Seeing Bright Red

A few statistics before we begin:

We lost a very dear friend and colleague a few years ago to blood cancer, leaving behind her family, husband and two small children. Getting the news of her condition was devastating and didn’t seem real; I can’t even imagine what her family were going through, and what they still must be. The strength and fight she had in her was unbelievable, and it was just her personality all over! She was a huge part of our dental practice family, and is very much missed every day.

Types of blood cancer

There are three main types of blood cancer – leukaemia, lymphoma and myeloma. Leukaemia causes the bone marrow to produce abnormal white cells, which crowd out or reduce the production of normal cells, making it hard for them to do their work such as carrying oxygen or clotting. Lymphoma and myeloma attack the immune system reducing the body’s ability to produce infection-fighting white blood cells, and plasma cells which contain antibodies.