Leukaemia is a rare disorder with 7,933 new diagnoses in England in 20181. Despite this, leukaemia often presents acutely and often via the emergency department. The Routes to Diagnosis Project, showed that of 2,197 new presentations of acute myeloid leukaemia in 2006, 54% presented via the emergency department2.
Learning bite: The majority of patients with acute leukaemia will first present to the emergency department.