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Bone Marrow Aspiration And Biopsy

What is bone marrow?

The soft material in the center of bones is the bone marrow. In some bones, the bone marrow consists only of fat. Other bones contain what is termed cellular marrow. The cellular marrow has different types of cells that give rise to red cells, white cells and platelets for our blood. The marrow may also contain abnormal cells, proteins, or inflammatory processed that are not normally present, such as cancer cells. Since the production of red cells requires iron, the marrow is one of the places in the body that normally stores a supply of iron.




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Bone Marrow Aspiration And Biopsy

Leukemia »

What is leukemia?

Leukemia is cancer that starts in the tissue that forms blood. To understand cancer, it helps to know how normal blood cells form.

Normal Blood Cells

Most blood cells develop from cells in the bone marrow called stem cells. Bone marrow is the soft material in the center of most bones.

Stem cells mature into different kinds of blood cells. Each kind has a special job:


White blood cells help fight infection. There are several types of white blood cells.


Red blood cells carry oxygen to tissues throughout the body.


Platelets help form blood clots that control bleeding.

White blood cells, red blood cells, and platelets are made from stem cells as the body needs them. When cells grow old or get damaged, they die, and new cells take their place.

The picture below shows how stem cells can mature into different types of white blood c...

Read the Leukemia article »




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