Myelofibrosis facts for kids

Primary myelofibrosis is a rare type of cancer that affects your bone marrow. Your bone marrow is the soft, spongy tissue inside your bones that makes blood cells. In primary myelofibrosis, the bone marrow doesn't work properly. Instead of making healthy blood cells, it starts to produce scar tissue. This can lead to serious problems with your blood and overall health.

Understanding Primary Myelofibrosis

Primary myelofibrosis is currently classified as a myeloproliferative neoplasm. This means it's a condition where your bone marrow makes too many of certain types of blood cells, or it makes cells that don't work correctly. Over time, the bone marrow becomes scarred, which makes it harder for it to produce the healthy blood cells your body needs.

How Does Primary Myelofibrosis Affect the Body?

When your bone marrow is scarred, it can't make enough healthy red blood cells, white blood cells, or platelets. This can lead to many different symptoms because these blood cells are important for carrying oxygen, fighting infections, and stopping bleeding.

What Are the Symptoms of Primary Myelofibrosis?

People with primary myelofibrosis might experience various symptoms. These can include:

• Feeling full or bloated: This is often due to an enlarged spleen, a condition called splenomegaly. The spleen is an organ that helps filter blood.
• Bone pain: You might feel pain in your bones.
• Easy bruising or bleeding: This happens because your blood might not have enough platelets. Platelets are tiny blood cells that help your blood clot and stop bleeding.
• Feeling very tired and losing weight: You might feel extremely tired, lose your appetite, and lose weight without trying.
• Enlarged liver and spleen: Sometimes, both your liver and spleen can become bigger than normal. This is called hepatosplenomegaly.
• Fatigue: A general feeling of being very tired and lacking energy.
• Gout: This is a type of arthritis that causes sudden, severe joint pain. It can be caused by high levels of uric acid in your blood.
• Getting sick more often: You might be more likely to get infections, like pneumonia, because your immune system isn't working as well.
• Looking pale and feeling out of breath: This can be a sign of anemia, which means your blood doesn't have enough red blood cells to carry oxygen around your body.
• Rarely, too many red blood cells: In some uncommon cases, people might have a raised red blood cell volume.
• Skin nodules: A very rare skin condition called cutaneous myelofibrosis can cause small bumps or nodules to appear under the skin.

See also

In Spanish: Mielofibrosis con metaplasia mieloide para niños