Leukemia is cancer of the blood cells. When someone has leukemia, the body makes large numbers of abnormal blood cells. Leukemias are a diverse group of diseases including those listed below. The relationship between leukemia and the environment is still not well understood; however, studies have determined that exposure to high levels of ionizing radiation has been linked to specific types of leukemia in both adults and children. Ionizing radiation exposures can be from natural or man-made sources. Radon is a natural gas coming from rocks and soil, and is sometimes found at high levels in home basements. Most man-made exposures to ionizing radiation come from X-rays or medical devices. Read more about leukemia.

  • Chronic lymphocytic leukemia - Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is a type of cancer that starts in the white blood cells (lymphocytes) in the bone marrow. It then invades the blood. Leukemia cells tend to build up in the body over time. In many cases people have no symptoms for at least a few years. Compared to other types of leukemia, CLL usually grows slowly.
  • Acute myeloid leukemia - Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) goes by many names, including acute myelocytic leukemia, acute myelogenous leukemia, acute granulocytic leukemia, and acute non-lymphocytic leukemia. "Acute" means that the leukemia can progress quickly, and if not treated, would probably be fatal in a few months. AML is a cancer that starts in the cells that are supposed to mature into different types of blood cells. AML starts in the bone marrow (the soft inner part of the bones where new blood cells are made), but in most cases it quickly moves into the blood. Both children and adults can get leukemia.

Measures are presented as either annual data at the state level or as five-year aggregate data at the county level. Leukemia measures are also featured under Childhood Cancer.

As part of the February 2023 update the Cancer Data source was updated to come directly from the State Health Registry of Iowa, Iowa Cancer Registry. The new data source allows data to be published with a shorter delay from the prior National SEER Data source. Due to this change the measures published for 2000-2016 may be slightly different than previously available.

Annual Leukemia Incidence Data

Annual cancer incidence measures can be used to identify trends and patterns of cancer incidence over time. Annual measures are only available at the state level. County level cancer incidence measures are available as five year aggregate data.

Measure Description:

  • The Cancer Count is the number of newly diagnosed malignant cancers.
  • The Crude Rate (Per 100K) is the rate of newly diagnosed malignant cancers per 100,000 population
  • The Age Adjusted Rate (Per 100K) is the age adjusted rate of newly diagnosed malignant cancers per 100,000 population. Age adjustment to the 2000 Standard US Census is done to allow direct comparison of rates in counties and state with different population age distributions.

View data visualization

5-Year Leukemia Incidence Data

Five Year incidence measures can be used to identify trends and patterns of cancer incidence over time and in different geographic areas. Five-year aggregate measures are available at the state and county level. Five-year aggregate data is used to reduce the presence of suppressed values due to small numbers; allowing display of data, and stabilization of rates to better evaluate trends. Even with this aggregation some values still need to be suppressed.

Measure Description:

  • The Average Annual Count is the average number of newly diagnosed malignant cancers per year in the five-year period.
  • The Crude Rate (Per 100K) is the rate of newly diagnosed malignant cancers per 100,000 Population during the five year period.
  • The Age Adjusted Rate (Per 100K) is the age adjusted rate of newly diagnosed malignant cancers per 100,000 Population during the five-year period. Age adjustment to the 2000 Standard US Census is done to allow direct comparison of rates in counties and state with different population age distributions.

View data visualization