Statistics About Leukemia

Some people use statistics to try to figure out their chances of getting cancer or of being cured. Statistics show what happens with large groups of people. Because no two people are alike, statistics cannot be used to know or predict what will happen to a particular person.

These are some 2012 statistics from the American Cancer Society about leukemia:

• This year, about 47,150 people in the U.S. will be diagnosed with leukemia. Of those cases, about 19,830 will be acute leukemia, and about 21,490 will be chronic leukemia.

• Although commonly thought of as a children's disease, leukemia is diagnosed much more often in adults than children.

• The most common type of leukemia diagnosed in children is acute lymphocytic leukemia. It accounts for about three out of four leukemia cases among children.

• The most common types of leukemia overall are acute myeloid leukemia, with about 13,780 cases each year (most in adults), and chronic lymphocytic leukemia, with about 16,060 cases each year (virtually all in adults).

• There are expected to be about 23,540 deaths this year due to leukemia.