Posts Tagged ‘White Blood Cells’

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Why Should You Monitor Your Blood Levels

Comments: 0June 3rd, 2010 by admin



You need to be vigilant about low as well as high white blood cell count. A low count may be brought on by treatments for cancer. If you have cancer, your oncologist and your hematologist will monitor your white cell counts very closely. Low white cell counts can bring along with them the risk of complications.

What is your physician looking for when he does blood work? When he checks your complete blood count, he is looking for:

Platelets – these help your blood to clot. A low count in platelets may mean your body’s blood won’t be able to clot itself.

Red Blood Cells – these carry oxygen through all the parts of your body. Their ability to do this depends on your body’s level of hemoglobin. If your hemoglobin count is low, it makes your system work harder to take oxygen to all the parts of your body, and results in anemia. You may feel short of breath and overly tired, if you are anemic.

White Blood Cells – these help your body to cast off infection and disease. A low white count means your body is more susceptible to disease. A high white blood cell count means that your body is probably already fighting an infection somewhere. Your doctor will determine where the infection is, so it can be treated.

At times, your physician may want to run what’s called a CBC on your blood. This is called a complete blood count, and is useful in telling your physician what is happening in your body.

In addition to a high white blood cell count, your health care provider will also check your blood for low white blood cell counts. Sometimes this is caused by some chemotherapy drugs, which can cause damage to your bone marrow. Bone marrow is responsible for making blood cells, and chemotherapy kills cells within your bone marrow. Your physician will be able to tell you if the treatment plan that he is putting you on could result in a low white blood count.

If your white count is high, that will tell your health care provider that your body is most likely fighting an infection somewhere, and he will then isolate it and treat it with medications, where possible, so that your body does not need to produce the excess of white blood cells.

If you have a low red count in addition to a high white count, you may be suffering from anemia. If you are often short of breath and fatigued, anemia may be the cause. Ask your physician to test for anemia if you are experiencing these symptoms. In some cases, your fatigue will be so severe that you may need to adjust treatments you receive for cancer or other diseases, in order to allow your body to produce more red cells. The white cell count may increase if infection is present.

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Canine Leukemia

Comments: 0May 16th, 2010 by admin



Leukemia is one type of cancer that affects the blood. This disease is characterized by a significant increase of the leukocytes, popularly called white blood cells.

The first symptom is a large number of these cells in the blood marrow or even in the circulation. Leukemia is a result of a genetic malfunction, a mutation that happens inside the bone’s marrow. This disease has several types. It is classified taking into consideration the type of the white blood cells that are involved and also the way in which the disease is progressing.

Leukemia can derive from the bone marrow and it is called myelogenous or granulocytic leukemia and also lymphocytic leukemia when it involves the lymph nodes.

Leukemia disease can either be chronic or acute. It all depends on the kind of white cells that are affected. The chronic one is named chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) or chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). The CLL in pets like dogs and cats has a lot of similarities with the human disease but still some major differences too.

The ALL, or acute lymphoid leukemia is a disease that progresses quite rapidly. A few of the symptoms include fever, anemia, random bleeding, loosing the appetite, swollen lymph nodes, panting, anxiousness, vomiting, pale gums, shifting limb lameness, lack of coordination, some infections that appear because of the week immune system. All these symptoms can cause death if the disease is not treated.

At a clinical examination, if the dog has fever or a bigger than usual spleen or liver, it is a good sign of the disease. Many mature animals develop the acute lymphoid leukemia rather then the young. This is a difference from the human disease which is quite common in children. Another important fact is that this disease can cause some ocular lesions in dogs.

The chronic leukemia has many cancer white cells that are affecting the body’s ability to fight the infections. The disease progresses slowly and it is fatal. It suppresses the immune system and then the bone marrow fails to function. The bag cells then infiltrate the other organs. The disease easily spreads into the blood, the lymph nodes, liver or spleen and into the central nervous system. The disease doesn’t create solid tumors or other solid masses. The death can be quite painful.

Discovering the leukemia can be done ding a simple blood examination and then, if there are suspicions, a bone marrow analysis.

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Fight Anemia With Vitamins And Over The Counter Products

Comments: 0February 4th, 2010 by admin



Anemia is epidemic in such countries as India, Vietnam and Bangladesh. Although anemia is epidemic among the people of impoverished countries it is also quite common in the United States.

Blood is made up of three types of Cells, red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets. Red blood cells contain iron-rich protein called hemoglobin that carries oxygen to all of the body’s tissue. Oxygen is required by the body for energy production and for other chemical reactions at the cellular level.

Anemia occurs when you do not have enough red blood cells needed by your body for energy production. You may feel tired both mentally and physically.

When the body is suffering from Anemia the kidneys cannot send enough of a hormone called erythropoietin to the bone marrow because of the lack of red blood cells. The bone marrow cannot produce red blood cells because of the lack of the hormone. Red blood cannot carry enough oxygen to the kidneys for the erythropoietin hormone production.

Because of this round-robin effect, Anemia can become life threading quite quickly. Anemia can be difficult to identify during its early stages because the symptoms may be mild and it can be easily mistaken for symptoms of other diseases or the side effects of medication.

Some of the symptoms of anemia are fatigue, weakness, shortness of breath, dizziness, a rapid heart beat, feeling cold, depression, and pale skin. When the brain does not get enough oxygen it can be hard to read, write or perform basic daily activities.

It is important to see a physician if you are experiencing significant fatigue or any of the other symptoms listed above.

Some of the causes of Anemia are blood loss, diseases such as kidney disease or bone cancer. Anemia can also be the side effect of medication, poor died, and vitamin or iron deficiencies.

The most common symptom is fatigue. We all get tired, from time to time, but the fatigue cause by anemia is one of extreme dead tiredness.

Sometimes iron deficiency anemia can cause extreme cravings such as a ravenous appetite for ice. One woman ate a five-pound block of ice and her husband took her to the doctor because her crunching of ice all night kept him awake.

Anemia can be detected by a standard hematocrit blood test. The hematocrit blood test measures the percentage of blood that is made up of red blood cells. Normal hematocrit is between 36 and 50 percent. Anything below 36 percent indicates anemia.

24 to 40 percent of hospitalized patients over the age of 65 are anemic. In a recent study anemic individuals between the ages of 70 and 79 were 28 percent more likely to die over the next 5 years. Anemic patients between the ages of 80 and 89 were 34 percent more likely to die. Anemic patients between 90 and 99 were 48 percent more likely to die.

Many physicians do not take anemia seriously. Physician of the elderly often tell them that anemia is a normal in the elderly and the physicians are failing to treat it. It is shocking to hear of patients complain of the symptoms of anemia, and then here that there physicians say not to worry about their low red blood count. While it is true that anemia is epidemic in the elderly it is not an excuse to leave it untreated.

American elderly are routinely dying from a deficiency of oxygenated blood and yet physicians are failing to recommend dietary supplements or prescribe anti-anemia treatments. Have your blood tested annually, to avoid becoming a victim of this appalling neglect by the medical establishment, and if necessary aggressively pursue some type of anti-anemia strategy.

Common Vitamins and over the counter products can help with treating Anemia such as Iron, Vitamin B, Vitamin C, Vitamin E, L-Carnation, Guarana, and Yohimbe.

Iron is an essential component of hemoglobin, the oxygen carrying substance in red blood cells. Iron is vital for the production of blood by the bone marrow. The single most common cause of anemia is the lack of Iron.

All of the different Vitamin Bs taken together as B-Complex work together as a team to perform vital biological processes, such as energy production and efficient metabolic function.

Vitamin C is essential for defending the body against pollution and infection. It enhances the immune system and aids in growth and repair of bone and tissue.

Vitamin E is known to help the red blood cells to live longer and keep them from breaking down too soon.

L-Carnation increases energy at the cell level by increased fat burning, increases the body’s ability to remove toxic disease-causing compounds and helps cells live longer.

Guarana is a natural herbal supplement used to increase energy and fight fatigue.

Yohimbe is recommended for men and woman who enjoy an active lifestyle.

Always consult your doctor before using this information.

This Article is nutritional in nature and not to be construed as medical advice.

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Aplastic Anemia Symptoms

Comments: 0January 13th, 2010 by admin



About 70 percent of aplastic anemia cases have unknown causes or idiopathic. With the remaining 30 percent, some of the causes are acquired or inherited. In the United States, the bone marrow disorder affects 2 to 4 per 1 million people each year. This rare disease is difficult to diagnose but, lately, there is a growing number of findings of patients acquiring the disease as a result of exposure to toxic chemicals like benzene.

Aplastic anemia is characterized by extremely low counts of all blood cell types (red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets) even when test results show normal appearances for them. Physical symptoms may include: pale skin, pale nails, rapid pulse rate, fatigue, and heart murmur.

Children living with aplastic anemia may exhibit the following symptoms:

Abnormal bleeding Bleeding nose Bleeding gums Small hemorrhages underneath the skin Blood in stool Multiple bruises Oral thrush (white patches on red, moist, and swollen surfaces inside the mouth) Infection Fever Sinus tenderness Headache Breathlessness Enlarged spleen or liver Nausea Dizziness Most causes in about 50 to 75 percent of childhood aplastic anemia cases are unknown; but possible acquired reasons may include:

History of taking medications Exposure to toxins like benzene and pesticides Exposure to heavy metals Exposure to high-dose radiation History of autoimmune disorder like lupus History of infection to contagious diseases like hepatitis, HIV (human immunodeficiency virus), Epstein-Barr virus, cytomegalovirus, and parvovirus B19 Aplastic anemia may develop in children who are diagnosed with the following diseases:

Fanconi Anemia – a blood-related disease that often leads to failure of the bone marrow Amegakaryocytic Thrombocytopenia – a rare syndrome characterized by bleeding and bruising due to low count of platelets Schwachman-Diamond Syndrome – a rare disorder that mostly involves the bone marrow, as well as the pancreas and the skeleton Dyskeratosis Congenita – a rare disease with 3 types of symptoms: degeneration of fingernails, darkening or absence of skin color; and changes with mucous membranes in the mouth, eyes, urethra, and anus

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What is Aplastic Anemia? – Its Causes, Symptoms and Treatment

Comments: 0January 1st, 2010 by admin



When your body stops producing enough new blood cells you may have Aplastic Anemia. Aplastic Anemia can happen to anyone at any age and is a serious condition. Bone marrow requires a sufficient number of cells to be able to replenish blood cells effectively. When marrow is not functioning as it should be this is called ‘Aplastic’.

Anemia refers to a low blood cell count. In individuals that have a reduction in red blood cell concentration in their blood would be diagnosed with Anemia. On the other hand, in Aplastic Anemia all three blood cell types are affected, they have a lower count of platelets along with lower counts of red and white blood cells.

Causes of the Condition

Bones marrow has a function that is very critical. It contains stem cells that produce red cells, white cells and platelets. If something ends up damaging your bone marrow then Aplastic anemia will develop. Exposure to toxic chemicals can cause damage resulting in Aplastic anemia.

Exposure to a chemical known as benzene, found in gasoline, is the main cause of the aplastic anemia, although researchers have found that it can differ depending on the patient. Leukemia can develop as a result of people being exposed to benzene and they do not even know it. Drugs, dyes, gasoline and certain synthetic rubbers contain benzene also.

Symptoms and Treatment

There are several symptoms that go along with Aplastic anemia. Some of the conditions are mentioned below:

* Excessive bruising

* Extremely pale skin tone

* Higher risk of infection

* Fatigue

Without treatment, the condition can be fatal. Patients are given medicine on a daily basis by their doctors to suppress the immune system from attacking cells in your bone marrow. There have been many cases where patients have been given a bone marrow transplant because it is seen as a possible cure.

If you feel you may have been around benzene you need to contact an experienced lawyer that knows your rights and will guide you in the right direction. You may be suffering from Aplastic anemia and a lawyer can help you.

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Aplastic Anemia Causes

Comments: 0September 8th, 2009 by admin



Aplastic anemia is an uncommon but severe disorder related to blood. This is often a result to an unexplainable failure of the bone marrow to produce enough blood cells. The disease is not contagious but can affect patients of any age.

This condition of the blood affects the red, and spongy cavities inside the bones (also known as bone marrow), where different blood cell types are produced – red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. When the bone marrow is damaged, the blood cell production is slowed down or becomes erratic.

Here are some of the most common symptoms of aplastic anemia:

Fatigue Unexpected bleeding Infections Here are some possible causes of aplastic anemia:

Autoimmune disorder. Lupus, one of the autoimmune disorders, can inflict injuries to the body through attacking the healthy cells inside the bone marrow. Use of medication. Certain types of antibiotics and drugs that have strong formulation of chemicals can cause aplastic anemia. Radiation or chemotherapy treatments. This procedure aims to kill cancerous cells but at the same time, they can also damage the body’s healthy cells. Benzene exposure. This is a known carcinogen and toxic substance that when inhaled or ingested for a long period of time may leave fatal effects on the body. Being aware of any of what might be an aplastic anemia cause can be helpful during the diagnosis process.

To diagnose the disease, the doctor would order a series of blood and bone marrow tests. The results would be positive when the blood has very low levels of all the three types of blood cells; and when the bone marrow has very low production of blood cells.

Treatment options are:

Drug therapies – to build immune system of patients; Bone marrow transplantation – only when there are matched donors; Reduced activities – to decrease symptoms of anemia; Isolation – to prevent occurrences of infections to patients; Antibiotics – to control the infection; and Blood transfusion – transfusion of red blood cells helps correct the disorder.

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Interesting Facts About Acute Leukemia

Comments: 0September 8th, 2009 by admin



Leukemia is also known as blood cancer. However, this term is a misnomer because rather than causing cancer in the blood, the cancer is caused in the bone marrow and it affects the white blood cells. These cells are responsible for fighting infections, bacteria and viruses that enter our body. Once the white blood cells are affected, our body gets weakened and is exposed to infections.

There are several types of leukemia and the treatment varies depending on the type. However, the two main types of leukemia are acute leukemia and chronic leukemia. Chronic leukemia is considered to be milder; in other words not all the white blood cells are defective and the progress of the disease is much slower than acute leukemia.

Acute leukemia advances rapidly and all the white blood cells are not normal. However, in some cases it is easier to treat than chronic leukemia.

In the United States, each year thousands of people are diagnosed with acute leukemia. However, it has been seen that a large number of children, mostly around 4 years old, are afflicted more frequently by acute leukemia. The good news is that more and more cases are being cured and there is constant research for new medication and treatment methods.

The cause of acute leukemia is unknown. The only thing that one can say for certain is that some people are at a higher risk of getting the disease than others. People who are exposed to radiations or certain chemicals have the highest chance of contracting the disease. In addition, there is the hereditary factor. It has been seen that children receive the defective gene from their mother and this gene may lead to acute leukemia.

People who have leukemia tend to bruise easily or bleed easily from the nose and gums. In addition to weak immune system, there is a general feeling of fatigue and unexplained weight loss. The disease by itself does not have any specific symptoms.

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Leukemia – Blood Cancer

Comments: 0June 6th, 2009 by admin



My wife was suffering from Acute Leukemia. She died on 23rd Jan 2008. Her disease was diagnosed very late when she was in the 3rd stage. When I came to know about the fact, I did intense search on the internet and gained knowledge about the Leukemia. Had I known those facts earlier, her life could have been saved. I have collected some information and I am uploading it on blog so that it can help some one.What is leukemia? In simple words it is, “Too many white blood cells in the body”. Blood contains three types of cells

RBC – Red Blood Cells (Carry Oxygen)

WBC – White Blood Cells (Also called leukocytes, they are part of body’s immune system. These cells have several subcategories and they have roles to fight with the invaders such as bacteria, viruses and foreign proteins.

Platelets – Helps in blood clotting.

These cells are produced inside bone marrow that presents inside the bone cavities. Leukemia affected bone marrow produces large number of abnormal white blood cells making patient extremely fragile to infection. Leukemia can be acute or chronic. Acute Leukemia is most dangerous.

Examples of Acute Leukemia are.

o Acute myelocytic leukaemia (AML)

o Acute lymphocytic leukaemia (ALL)

Examples of Chronic Leukemia are.

o Chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL)

o Chronic myelogenous leukaemia (CML)

It is possible to have chronic leukaemia for months or even years without knowing it.

What are the symptoms?

o Tiredness due to Anemia.

o Paleness of the face.

o Bruising easily even without falling. A purple/dark red spot around bruise indicates less platelet count.

o Repeated Infections.

o Weight Loss.

o Loss of appetite.

o Fever.

o Sweats.

o Enlarged Lymph Glands.

o Fever.

o Enlarged spleen cause enormous pain in the stomach.

o Bleeding from Gum, Nose and Ears due to lack of platelets in the blood stream.

What cause Leukaemia?

The causes are not very clearly known some reasons are…

o Genetic Effects.

o Exposure to retroviruses.

How it is diagnosed?

Many times it is diagnosed by chance when blood test is performed for other reasons. Doctors can diagnose based on the blood reports but bone marrow test is used to confirm the diagnosis. Special test such as chromosome study is performed to classify the Leukaemia.

What is the treatment?

It usually involves intensive chemotherapy. Drugs are given as injection into veins. Other chemotherapy drugs such as fludarabine (Fludara) may be used in late stage disease. In bone marrow failure steroid treatment is given to recover the bone marrow. Chemotherapy drugs are very strong and have some side effects like fatigue, loss of hair and loss of appetite. It also kills the healthy bone marrow thus making patient weaker. These drugs can not distinguish between healthy and ill cells. Milder cases can be cured by regular blood transfusion. X-ray therapy (Radiation) given to infected lymph or to whole body depends on the level of the disease. In some cases bone marrow transplant can be done but this is very expensive treatment and out of the reach of a poor common man. Patient need a matching bone marrow donor as body easily rejects foreign bone marrow. Fifty to sixty percent patients live normal life after bone marrow transplant. Since this disease can occur any time again so regular monitoring is required.

I hope that this article would be informative. I am also writing an article how cancer can be cured using Pranayam, Yoga, Food and Natural herbs. I will also talk about the website alternative cancer care and about the Green Blood.

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Hemoglobin and Blood Cell Count Tests – The Basics

Comments: 0April 10th, 2009 by admin



When your blood is drawn and sent to a laboratory for testing, a specially trained lab tech will test your blood. Lab techs typically have either a Bachelor’s college degree in Medical Technology, or an Associate’s degree. To be certified, they must take and pass a national examination. A phlebotomist (blood drawer) or a lab aide will typically draw your blood. Sometimes a nurse will draw your blood and send it to the lab for testing.

The most common blood test that doctors order is called the CBC-the Complete Blood Count. Some labs refer to it as an ABC-Automated Blood Count. The lab counts the cells in your blood-the red cells (RBC’s), white cells (WBC’s), and platelets. This is done in the Hematology department of the lab with sophisticated machines that the lab techs run, maintain, and troubleshoot.

Normal values given here are average ranges. Different laboratories use different methods, yielding slightly different results.

The CBC (ABC) consists of the following tests:

Red Blood Cell count (RBC count). Normal value for males is 4.2-5.6 million/mcl of blood. Normal value for females is 3.9-5.2 million/mcl of blood. Hemoglobin (hgb). This is a protein in rbc’s that binds oxygen to carry the oxygen throughout the body. Normal value for males is 14-18 grams/dl of blood. Normal value for females is 12-16 grams/dl of blood. Hematocrit (hct). This is the percentage of red cells in your blood. About half of your blood is a liquid called plasma made up mostly of water, and the other half is cells. Most of these cells are red cells, which give your blood its red color. If your hct is low, you are anemic. Normal value for males is 40-54%. Normal for females is 37-47%. If your hct is about 40%, that means about 60% of your circulating blood is plasma. White Blood Cell count (WBC count). Normal value is 5,000-10,000 white blood cells/mcl of blood. Differential-a lab tech differentiates the five types of WBC’s. The percentage of certain types of WBC’s is higher in bacterial infections, other types are higher with allergies or parasitic infections, and another type is higher with viral infections. Today, this is usually done by a machine, but if the machine finds anything abnormal, a lab tech will recheck it under a microscope before reporting out a final result. Platelet count-counts the number of platelets in your bloodstream, which help function in the clotting process. Platelets are very tiny-the smallest of the blood cells. Normal range is 130,000-400,000/mcl of blood.

These are the basic tests of the CBC (ABC). Other values have to do with various parameters of the red blood cell. This test is done in the Hematology department of the laboratory.

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Aplastic Anemia – The Symptoms and Potential Causes of Aplastic Anemia

Comments: 0March 11th, 2009 by admin



Aplastic anemia is an extremely rare disorder in which the ability of the body’s bone marrow to reproduce blood cells has been damaged. The red blood cells which are produced by the bone marrow help carry the oxygen throughout your body as well removing the carbon dioxide from your cells. The white cells are what help us in preventing or fighting off infections while the blood platelets help us by “clotting” or sticking together to stop bleeding.

In an individual who has aplastic anemia, the stem cells of the bone marrow are damaged to the point where they can no longer produce these healthy cells. In this medical guide on Anemia, you will learn symptoms which may be experienced with aplastic anemia and what sometimes causes this disorder.

The Potential Causes of Aplastic Anemia

There are some cases in which aplastic anemia is inherited, however, this is extremely rare and it is typically acquired from various medical conditions which include cancer treatments that utilize chemotherapy and radiation as a form of treatment which not only kills the cancer cells, but also healthy cells including the stem cells within the bone marrow.

This form of anemia can also be caused when an individual is exposed to certain toxins such as pesticides, benzene, and arsenic, as well as when taking certain antibiotic and rheumatoid arthritis medications. Aplastic anemia has also been acquired in some individuals who have had viral infections such as hepatitis, parvovirus B19, HIV, cytomegalovirus, and Epstein-Barr.

Symptoms which may be caused by Aplastic Anemia

The most common symptom associated with aplastic anemia is feeling consistently weak and tired which is caused by an insufficient amount of red blood cells or hemoglobin within the red blood cells which is responsible for the oxygen being carried to the body. This condition can also cause dizziness, headache, shortness of breath, cold hands and feet.

When the white blood cells become low the body is more susceptible to viral infections such as influenza which tends to last longer and occur more frequently than in individuals with a normal blood count. A low platelet count causes an individual to bleed more easily and typically causes frequent nose bleeds, bleeding of the gums, and bleeding which is hard to stop when injured.

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