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Why can hemolytic anemia cause jaundice?

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blood disease Peripheral blood smear revealing histopathologic features indicative of a blast crisis in a case of chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML). Blast crisis occurs when one-fifth to one-third of the cells in the blood or bone marrow are immature blood cells, or blast cells. This phase of CML is characterized by fever, weakness, and an enlarged spleen.

Hemolytic anemia causes jaundice because it involves the destruction of red blood cells at a rate that exceeds the liver's capacity to process the resulting waste products.12

When red blood cells are destroyed, the hemoglobin they contain is broken down into bilirubin, a yellow pigment. Under normal conditions, the liver removes this bilirubin from the blood and secretes it into the bile. However, in cases of hemolytic anemia, the rapid or excessive destruction of red blood cells leads to an overproduction of bilirubin. When this production surpasses the liver's ability to conjugate and excrete the pigment, unconjugated bilirubin accumulates in the bloodstream and tissues, resulting in the yellow discoloration of the skin and eyes known as jaundice.213