Why is this study being done?

This study is being done to learn more about myeloid leukemia.

Normally, cells grow and divide to form new cells as the body needs them. When cells grow old, they die, and new cells take their place. Sometimes this orderly process goes wrong. New cells form when the body does not need them, and old cells do not die when they should. Leukemia is cancer that begins in blood cells. At first, leukemia cells function almost normally. In time, they may crowd out normal white blood cells, red blood cells, and platelets. This makes it hard for blood to do its work. For more information, visit the National Cancer Institute's "What You Need to Know About Leukemia" web page.

Not a lot is known about why some people develop myeloid leukemia. The goal of this study is to gather information about personal habits, such as smoking and alcohol use, medical history, and environmental and chemical exposures, from people who have been diagnosed with myeloid leukemia and compare it to the same information gathered from people who do not have myeloid leukemia. The doctors and researchers hope that by asking very carefully determined questions of people with and without cancer that they might find a common thread among those who developed leukemia (this research is called epidemiology). This statewide epidemiology study is being conducted by the Mayo Clinic, University of Minnesota, and the Minnesota Department of Health.

Sponsor

National Institutes of Health/National Cancer Institute

Researcher in charge of the study

Julie A. Ross, Ph.D.
Masonic Cancer Center, University of Minnesota
MMC 422 420 Delaware St. SE
Minneapolis, MN 55455

Questions?

Read Information for PALM Study Participants, or call the study staff at the University of Minnesota toll-free at 1-866-434-9879.