I propose to edit this sentence under the Diagnosis section of the article:

“A peripheral blood smear showing an abundance of damaged cells known as smudge cells or smear cells can also indicate the presence of the disease (smudge cells are due to cancer cells lacking in vimentin, a cytoskeletal protein)”.

I am proposing the following change:

“A peripheral blood smear showing an abundance of damaged cells known as smudge cells or smear cells can also indicate the presence of the disease (smudge cells are due to cancer cells lacking in vimentin, a type structural component in a cell which maintains the cell’s internal shape and mechanical resilience, a type of cytoskeletal protein)”.

Someone who had little to no science background may not understand the difference between cancer cells and normal cells described if there is no explanation of what ‘cytoskeleton’ is referring to. It could be critical for the person to understand these details of CLL per se if they have or someone close to them has recently been diagnosed. Developing a greater understanding of the difference between healthy cells versus cancer cells can allow the person to take part in medical conversations regarding the pathology of the disease and how it is affecting their body. Although a small change, enhancing a patient’s understanding of their disease allows them to take part in treatment decisions better and overall leads to greater autonomy over their care.

The proposed change was developed using secondary resources found through a PubMed search.