Series Editor: Eric D. Jacobsen, MD
Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is the most common hematologic malignancy in the Western world, representing 30% of leukemias. The median age at diagnosis is 72 years, and fewer than 10% of patients are under 60. CLL occurs more frequently in Caucasians than in other ethnic groups and more often in men than in women. The age-adjusted incidence rate is 4.2 per 100,000 population. Although CLL is generally considered indolent, it is a heterogeneous disease, and while many patients have slowly progressive disease, a proportion of patients have disease that will have a more aggressive course, requiring treatment soon after diagnosis. Over the past 3 decades, increasing knowledge about the mechanism of CLL and the introduction of new chemotherapeutic and biologic agents has led to better treatments, improved risk stratification, and more durable remissions. Despite these advances in treatment, CLL remains incurable outside the setting of hematopoietic stem cell transplant.
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