Blood tests

[lifegems]

Hi All. Can someone tell me what blood tests I should be asking for . I have PA and atrophic gastritis and not had any tests for about 5 years. I think my iron might be low but wondering what else I should get checked . I’m in Portugal so not sure if they know much about PA and requires blood tests.

Thanks

[Sleepybunny]

Hi,

Are you getting regular B12 injections for your PA?

Articles about testing B12 during treatment

pernicious-anaemia-society....

stichtingb12tekort.nl/engli...

b12-institute.nl/en/diagnos...

Besides B12, forum members often report folate, iron and Vitamin D deficiencies so might be worth getting these tested.

It's quite common for people on this forum to also have thyroid issues so may be worth getting thyroid tests.

Thyroid tests

thyroiduk.org/getting-a-dia...

I suggest you put any thyroid questions on Thyroid UK forum on HU.

Other info about PA and B12 deficiency

PAS (Pernicious Anaemia Society)

Based in Wales, UK. Has some members not in UK.

pernicious-anaemia-society.org

There is a helpline number that PAS members can ring and an online contact form.

B12 Deficiency Info website

b12deficiency.info/

Two useful B12 books

"What You Need to Know About Pernicious Anaemia and B12 Deficiency" by Martyn Hooper

Martyn Hooper is the chair of PAS (Pernicious Anaemia Society). UK Treatment info in book is out of date.

"Could it Be B12?: An Epidemic of Misdiagnoses" by Sally Pacholok and JJ. Stuart (US authors)

Very comprehensive with lots of case studies.

Films and videos about PA and B12 deficiency

PAS conferences

pernicious-anaemia-society....

Films about B12 deficiency

b12deficiency.info/films/

B12 article from Mayo Clinic in US

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articl...

Table 1 in above article is about frequent misconceptions about B12 deficiency that health professionals may have.

I suggest you try to find out if there are any national/regional guidelines on treating B12 deficiency for Portugal.

Maybe look for documents published by Portuguese Society of Haematology.

List of European haematology societies

esh.org/national-society-of...

Links to forum threads where I left detailed replies with lots of B12 deficiency info eg causes and symptoms, UK B12 documents, more B12 books, more B12 websites and B12 articles and a few hints on dealing with unhelpful GPs.

Some links may have details that could be upsetting.

Some of the info will be specific to UK.

healthunlocked.com/pasoc/po...

healthunlocked.com/pasoc/po...

healthunlocked.com/pasoc/po...

I am not medically trained.

[lifegems in reply to Sleepybunny]

Thanks so much for all that info ! Yes I SI every week

[Gambit62 Administrator]

I'd suggest a general blood panel which would look for any signs of anaemia eg caused by iron deficiency and also ask for a thyroid panel if you are feeling grotty as there is a very high cross over of PA and autoimmune thyroid conditions.Not worth testing B12 at this point

[lifegems in reply to Gambit62]

Thank you 🙏

[Narwhal10]

Hi life gems,

Seeing as you haven’t had any blood tests for five years,

As Gambit said no point having vitamin B12 checked, especially as you SI every week. Ask for a full iron panel so that’s :

* Full Blood Cound

* iron Panel - Iron including total iron blood binding capacity (TIBC) and transferrin.

* Thyroid

* Vit D

* Folate

* Urea and Electrolytes - So kidney function

* Liver Function - LFT

* CRP - C reactive protein - looking for inflammation (gastritis is inflammation of gut but the body doesn’t work in isolation.)

Sorry , don’t know what else to suggest.

Best wishes.

[jade_s]

Maybe a new endoscopy if the last one was 5 years ago? More experienced members will have better info.... i can't remember off the top of my head the recommended time interval for getting them. Every few years I think.

[lifegems in reply to jade_s]

Thanks

[Littlelodge123 in reply to jade_s]

I was told there is no NHS supervision program at all for PA sufferers and was told I would have no further endoscopies. Have others been told differently?

[lifegems in reply to Littlelodge123]

I think it depends on if you have atrophic gastritis or not. Which I do. I have both endoscopy and the other one ! Which actually has been a lifesaver as they found a very large polyp that was turning ! I would ask for them every few years

[Littlelodge123]

They never said I had atrophic gastritis but I had positive IFAB and PCAB and fairly low B12 so diagnosed with PA. Thanks for your insight.

[lifegems in reply to Littlelodge123]

Not sure I have much insight tbh 😝

[FlipperTD]

Scientist, not medic.

As far as I'm aware, the healthcare situation in Portugal is very well developed, laboratories have external quality assurance programmes, and I'd be surprised if the general service provision was not at least as good as in the UK.

In terms of what tests you should be asking for, that's really a job for a doctor to decide; they request the tests and interpret the results.

As a basic Haematology screen, a Full Blood Count should detect Iron Deficiency Anaemia although direct measurement of Iron and Iron Binding Capacity, as well as Ferritin, can catch things at an earlier stage. If you're injecting B12, there's no point in measuring that. Serum folate might be worth considering however.

In terms of Clinical Chemistry, Urea and Electrolytes and Liver Function are straightforward tests, and the requesting doctor will be very familiar with interpreting the results.

Good luck.

[lifegems in reply to FlipperTD]

Thanks .. they are good here in Portugal !