Good Morning. I am on every 3 mos of blood work. Just got the results back. I just need to know that blood work looks okay? After reading here and getting informed I do believe that everything is looking good. But if you can provide feedback I would appreciate it.
I found out that I had CLL Feb 2018- just because of a blood test. No symptoms. I am hoping that they can move blood work to every 6 mos month or yearly would be better. I see my doctor every 6 mos now. Next appt with him is in Dec.
WBC: June-22.4 Sept- 22.1
Platelets: June 251 Sept- 223
Lymph Absolute:June 17.3 Sept- 18.1
Hemoglobin: June 14.7 Sept 14.4
Can these numbers fluctuate and still be okay? Any advise is appreciated.
Thank you!!
Jackie
Written by
honey1969
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The simple answer is absolutely YES. And without me doing the math, my eyeball of your numbers says they are all well within the normal range of the test accuracy alone (if you ran multiple tests on exactly the same blood you would see similar variations). And our own blood & bodies vary more than that from one day to the next.
For most of us, I think we would love to have your current numbers.
I will send you a Chat PM with links to many different websites, but for starters there are a series of videos by Dr. Susan LeClair on Patient Power that address your exact question.
I am fortunate to have a wonderful CLL expert doctor and he has an equally wonderful PA.
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My blood is taken about one hour before the appointment and most of the results are posted on their computer system when I see the PA. She runs through the results, we look for outliers or changes, and then Dr. Furman arrives and discusses anything that might be significant.
Any tests that take longer to complete are posted within 1-2 weeks and the PA calls or emails me if there are results that warrant a discussion.
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With your numbers and the almost negligible change- I would expect that a CLL expert doctor would move you to a 6 month schedule after he/she is comfortable that you are not progressing and all your nodes and spleen are stable. They will likely suggest that you make a quicker appointment if you get any symptoms.
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In my first 2 years after diagnosis, I had an inexperienced Hem/Onc that insisted on seeing me and testing my blood every month. I later went to an expert at Stanford who was far more calm and did much better explanations, that helped me understand the test results.
This sounds great. I started seeing my oncologist in Feb. He had me do blood work in March then again in June and each time I did the same- I would have the labs done and then he would go over them at the visit. In June I was told that my doc visits could be moved unless I needed to see him to every 6 mos. This was the first visit without seeing doc to explain the labs. I did however speak to the nurse and she told me that labs were stable. She also said that in Dec when labs are done again that the doc might move my visits. I pray that numbers stay good and I can stay on W/W. My doc is very nice and he does work close with the docs in Columbus- OSU and Mayo Clinic in Cleveland. I do feel comfortable with him at this point. Plus it helps that I have you all to turn to if something doesn't sound right.
Thank you!! I still get very nervous and I try to stay calm. I know I am not alone. Coming here and reading and getting informed has helped me so much.
I pray that things improve for you! Thank you for your reply. I do not know what I would have done if I didn't find this place. I come here often. I read stories of W/W- some short and some long. I pray for long for me. My blood work looks good to me but just hearing someone else tell me- I feel better.
Yes, your blood work does look good. Be sure to keep an eye on neutrophils too (absolute count). They aren't listed here. May you have a long run on W&W before needing treatment. But speaking from personal experience after 1 year on Ibrutinib, I can say the new treatments are not so bad and can make one much healthier than a life without treatment when things get to a certain point. I am not aware of any side effects from the ibrutinib in my own usage of it (although others do experience some side effects). And I am sure my hemoglobin will come back up once the effects of a recent treatment for another cancer wear off fully.
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