Is Leukemia hereditary disease?

Hello. I'm 35 year old female.
I will try to describe you what happened and what is troubling me for the past two weeks.
Three months ago, my close relative was diagnosed with acute leukemia and, you will not believe this, he died after two months fighting with this serious disease.
We couldn’t believe something like this could happen.
So, what really is bothering me, beside the death of my close relative, is question-is acute leukemia hereditary? My grandfather died from leukemia and I can't help not thinking about it.
I would like to hear something more about symptoms are possible cure for this terrible disease.
Thank you in advance.

I think I can help you because in the past three or four years I’ve been reading a lot about leukemias. I did so because three years ago my wife died from leukemia.
First I will give you medical definition of disease.
Leukemias are a group of disorders which represent cancers of the blood and bone marrow system. Some leukemias are slow growing, relatively benign disorders requiring only observation, often for periods of years. Other diseases are dangerous, rapidly growing processes, which require emergency treatment.
Your relative probably had one of these rapidly growing leukemias like my wife.
Symptoms are mostly concerning the blood changes. Main symptoms are significant anemia (low red blood cells-causing fatigue or weakness), thrombocytopenia (lack of platelets potentially causing bleeding) or neutropenia (lack of the infection fighting white cells neutrophils). In this moment there is no proof of leukemia hereditarity!
As you know, there is no definitive cure for leukemia. The goal of any treatment is to transfer a patient from this rapidly growing to chronic type of leukemia.
People diagnosed with chronic leukemia can live a long and quality life.

I won't be much help, but I wanted to add that my grandad died adult-onset (diagnosed in his 30s, died in his 60s) leukemia and my cousin (at 25) recently was diagnosed with the same form of leukemia. They're testing me (29) now for the same thing. I believe it is hereditary, whether or not there are statistics out there yet.

I also starting to believe its herediary, My grandpa had it, Now I just found out my dad has it too. So I am going to get tested next week.

This past month my 10 year old daughter was diagnosed with having luekemia. 16 years ago my husband had a son who past away from the same kind of luekemia . My husband has only had two children and they were both diagnosed with the same thing .They can say what they want about it not being herediary But I know it is.

My mother was diagnosed with chronic leukemia about six years ago. Last month my father was diagnosed with acute leukemia. Have any studies been done showing environmental link? Mom and Dad are #10 and #11 on their road who have had cancer. They live on a rural road so 11 houses represents ALL within a quarter mile. All are in the water table of a lab that created lots of radioactive debris--the Clinton Administration ordered it cleaned. Unfortunately all the folks on the road had well water until recently.

My mother just died from a 2 year battle with "Treatment Related" AML. I sympathize with all of you. I think there is a propensity for the development of any cancer within certain DNA markup. We know DNA is hereditary and we will one day prove that correlation between certain environments and/or treatments and the persons DNA is strong. Some people who are exposed to carcinogens will develop a Leukemia, some will not. The question is really how easy is it for your DNA to be translocated when exposed. How is it that people with dark skin are more resistant to uv-rays then people that are not? It lies in their DNA that is hereditary, however demographic factors also apply, where do they live, what do they drink, breath, eat.... these. Benzene has been proven to cause AML spacifically.
There are only a handfull of FDA approved treatments on the medicine shelf, when they manage to compile the patients DNA, treatment and outcomes, they may discover that certain Chemo/s work better than others depending on the patients DNA sequence and the ability of their cells ability to withstand treatment without translocating. Once a Translocation has occured it is like finding a needle in a haystack, to kill the stem-cell that is cancerous. So basically now knowing that my mother developed AML from the use of Adrimyacine (a topoisomere) used to open the DNA helix so that the radiation would be more effective during the treatment of her breast cancer, I would consider myself pre-disposed based on my genetics to AML and will seriously consider this should I ever need to undergo any kind of chemo therapy. Sorry for the long explanation, hope it helped.

If leukemia is cancer of the white blood cells how could it be anything but hereditary? Your blood, is part of your DNA make up which is directly from your parents.

I've just lost my mother to leukemia. It was sudden. She'd had it for a while but didn't know. Doctors missed it. No one knew till it was to late. Her body just shut down. Septic shock.

I strongly believe that this disease is hereditary. People from 4 Generations from my mums side have died from the disease, including my great granpa, my gran and my mum.
My concern now is for my two brothers, myself, my children and my nieces and nephews. It skipped alot people on my mums side but people from 4 generations still passed away through this.

The question that bugs me is who will get it and who will be lucky enough to escape the odds?

Sorry for being morbid.

My mother died from ALL. She complained of being tired, but that was not unusual for Mom. She went from being her normal self, to being dead within two weeks. Her doctor told us children to see a Physician IMMEDIATELY if we started feeling tired for no good reason. He obviously thinks it is hereditary. He said it would do no good to be tested now because it comes on so suddenly.

Then, later I spoke to the husband of a friend who died from ALL. The same thing happened to her. She was tired for no good reason, and although she saw a doctor for it, they failed to test her for ALL until it was too late. Her husband told me that this lady had a parent who died from the same disease. They may not have proof that it is hereditary, but I firmly believe it is.