Introduction:

In recent years therapeutic advances have achieved an increase in the survival of childhood cancer, which leads to the development of long-term complications dependent on it or on the disease itself, being acute lymphoblastic leukemia the most common during childhood.

Objective:

to update knowledge on late complications that may occur during adulthood in individuals who suffered from childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Methods: relevant studies were selected from digital databases such as Medline, Virtual Health Library, SciELO, Research Gate, Google Scholar and digital books related to the subject. Of the 117 articles chosen, 30 were used, which constitute the bibliographic references of the work.

Development:

Leukemia constitutes one third of all childhood cancer cases. Polychemotherapy and radiotherapy in pediatric patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia may cause complications that appear years after the end of treatment and require diagnostic precision as well as therapeutic management to guarantee their quality of life during adulthood. Neurological and cardiovascular complications may be dependent on the disease or its treatment.

Conclusions:

Childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia currently shows a high survival rate and cure criteria. The therapeutic actions used for this entity may cause long-term complications in these patients, as well as sequelae and involvement of various organs and systems, so medical follow-up is essential throughout life.

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