Acute myeloid leukemia (AML): Year of the Zebra 2026

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Introduction0:00–1:52

Acute myeloid leukemia or AML is a type of blood cancer in which the bone marrow makes too many immature blood cells called myeloblasts.
Even though it's considered a rare disease, it's the most common type of acute leukemia in adults, accounting for about 1% of all cancers in the United States.
Now every cell type in the blood starts out as a hematopoietic stem cell, which is a multipotent stem cell that can develop into multiple different cell types depending on the signals it receives.
As the stem cell divides, it doesn't immediately become a mature blood cell. Instead, it first commits to one of two main pathways or cell lineages called myeloid or lymphoid.
Cells that follow the myeloid lineage become red blood cells which carry oxygen throughout the body, megaaryocytes that produce platelets, which help stop bleeding, and myeloblasts, which are large immature white blood cells with a large central nucleus and very little surrounding cytoplasm.
Under normal conditions, myeloblasts continue to mature into certain white blood cells such as neutrophils and monocytes, which are especially important for fighting bacterial infections.
In AML, myeloblasts get stuck partway through development. So instead of maturing into these different cell types, they begin to rapidly multiply and pile up in the bone marrow.
This crowding of the bone marrow leaves less space for the development of healthy, mature blood cells such as red blood cells or platelets.
Affected cells usually have specific genetic mutations such as pieces of DNA that are missing, duplicated, or rearranged.
AML can be classified based on these genetic changes and how far those cells had progressed in their normal development before they got stuck.
All right, now acute leukemias tend to be aggressive and fast growing, meaning symptoms can appear and worsen over weeks rather than years.

Clinical Manifestations 1:52–3:15

Since the bone marrow becomes filled with immature cells that don't work properly, there isn't enough room to make healthy blood cells.
This results in 3 main problems. First, when there are too few red blood cells, the body doesn't get enough oxygen, and this can cause fatigue, weakness, shortness of breath, dizziness, and pale skin.
This lack of sufficient amounts of red blood cells to carry oxygen throughout the body is known as anemia. Next, when white blood cells are low or not functioning normally, the immune system becomes weaker.
People with AML may get frequent infections, have unexplained fevers, or find that infections are harder to recover from.
Finally, when platelet levels drop, the blood can't clot as well as it should. This may lead to easy bruising, nose bleeds, bleeding gums, or tiny red or purple spots on the skin called petechiae.
As the number of mild blasts rises, they can spill out of the bone marrow into the bloodstream and collect in other parts of the body, sometimes causing swollen lymph nodes or an enlarged spleen or liver.
Because these symptoms can initially resemble common illnesses, AML is often diagnosed after blood tests reveal abnormal blood counts.

Diagnosis3:15–3:51

A peripheral blood smear might show large numbers of myeloblasts, cells that are normally only seen in the bone marrow and don't typically circulate in the blood.
To confirm the diagnosis, doctors usually perform a bone marrow examination in which a small sample of bone marrow is collected and examined under the microscope.
Additional tests such as flow cytometry and genetic or molecular testing help identify the exact type of leukemia and its specific features.
Treatment of AML is based on the type and stage of the cancer but generally involves a combination of chemotherapy, targeted or biologic therapies, and stem cell or bone marrow transplant.

Treatment3:51–4:12

The main goals are to remove leukemia cells, allow healthy blood cells to recover, and reduce the risk of the disease coming back.
All right, as a quick recap, acute myeloid leukemia is a type of blood cancer that happens when immature myeloid cells called myeloblasts stop developing properly and start multiplying out of control.

Review4:12–4:32

These abnormal cells crowd out healthy blood cells, leading to symptoms like fatigue, infections, and easy bleeding.