Re: Red blood cells too big?

[Guest guest]

hi shirley, your red blood cells were 2 high, so she increased the folic acid

cuz the mtx has alot of BAD side effects.

i take 2 folic acid pillsd a day & the mtx 7 pills every friday. HOPE i could b

of some HELP!

god bless,melyndagamez 7/15/08 6:57p.m.central

[ ] Red blood cells too big?

My labs this month show that my red blood cells are too big. My

rheummy said to increase my folic acid to two pills a day. She said it

could be caused by the MTX.

Could someone explain this?

Thanks,

Shirley

------------------------------------

[Guest guest]

Thanks, Melynda. It didn't sound like anything that I should be

concerned about, but it is nice to be enlightened.

Shirley

--- In , Melynda Gamez <melyndagamez@...>

wrote:

>

> hi shirley, your red blood cells were 2 high, so she increased the

folic acid cuz the mtx has alot of BAD side effects.

> i take 2 folic acid pillsd a day & the mtx 7 pills every friday.

HOPE i could b of some HELP!

> god bless,melyndagamez 7/15/08 6:57p.m.central

[Guest guest]

Can't explain it fully but my doc said the mtx can affect the bone

marrow, causing a severe form of anemia. Remember, mtx was first used

as a chemo drug for leukemia, so it stands to reason that it affects

blood in serious ways. Not sure why the red cells would get big rather

than just fewer, but if he's upping your folic acid then it's probably

going to be fixed with that higher dose. Just be sure to keep up on all

your labs so you're getting monitored to make sure your blood goes back

to normal.

>

> My labs this month show that my red blood cells are too big. My

> rheummy said to increase my folic acid to two pills a day. She said

it

> could be caused by the MTX.

> Could someone explain this?

> Thanks,

> Shirley

[Guest guest]

Hi Shirley,

The description you give is that your red cells are slightly larger than

normal,( not that there are too many) the mean cellular volume, mcv, which the

labs calculate, is increased. This is called a macroctic picture (big cells)

rather than normocytic (normal sized)  Yes it is almost certainly caused in

your case ,I would have thought, by the therapeutic effect of methotrexate,and

increasing the folic acid makes sense.

The findings shouldn't worry you, but it would probably be worth checking your

serum B 12 vitamin level also, as this is another cause of a macrocytic picture,

which it would be important to treat. Another time when larger red cells are

seen is when people have some chronic liver condition, but again it is not cause

for concern , just something to notice.

Hope this helps,

Chris

retired doc,UK

[ ] Red blood cells too big?

My labs this month show that my red blood cells are too big. My

rheummy said to increase my folic acid to two pills a day. She said it

could be caused by the MTX.

Could someone explain this?

Thanks,

Shirley

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[Guest guest]

Thanks, . It is so nice to be a part of a well informed group.

Shirley

>

> Can't explain it fully but my doc said the mtx can affect the bone

> marrow, causing a severe form of anemia. Remember, mtx was first

used

> as a chemo drug for leukemia, so it stands to reason that it affects

> blood in serious ways. Not sure why the red cells would get big

rather

> than just fewer, but if he's upping your folic acid then it's

probably

> going to be fixed with that higher dose. Just be sure to keep up on

all

> your labs so you're getting monitored to make sure your blood goes

back

> to normal.

>

[Guest guest]

Hi

Yes, this does help, it makes sense to me now (sometimes hard to

do). You gave me a very good answer. What a blessing to have a doc

as part of our group.

Thanks,

Shirley

>

> Hi Shirley,

> The description you give is that your red cells are slightly

larger than normal,( not that there are too many) the mean cellular

volume, mcv, which the labs calculate, is increased. This is

called a macroctic picture (big cells) rather than normocytic

(normal sized)  Yes it is almost certainly caused in your

case ,I would have thought, by the therapeutic effect of

methotrexate,and increasing the folic acid makes sense.

> The findings shouldn't worry you, but it would probably be worth

checking your serum B 12 vitamin level also, as this is another

cause of a macrocytic picture, which it would be important to treat.

Another time when larger red cells are seen is when people have some

chronic liver condition, but again it is not cause for concern ,

just something to notice.

> Hope this helps,

> Chris

> retired doc,UK

[Guest guest]

Thanks for this explanation! I like to know these things

>

> Hi Shirley,

> The description you give is that your red cells are slightly larger

than normal,( not that there are too many) the mean cellular volume,

mcv, which the labs calculate, is increased. This is called

a macroctic picture (big cells) rather than normocytic (normal sized)

  Yes it is almost certainly caused in your case ,I would have

thought, by the therapeutic effect of methotrexate,and increasing

the folic acid makes sense.

> The findings shouldn't worry you, but it would probably be worth

checking your serum B 12 vitamin level also, as this is another cause

of a macrocytic picture, which it would be important to treat.

Another time when larger red cells are seen is when people have some

chronic liver condition, but again it is not cause for concern , just

something to notice.

> Hope this helps,

> Chris

> retired doc,UK

[Guest guest]

What a great explanation from the retired doctor in the UK, Chris.  I was told

that I also had these large blood cells, but it was never really explained to

me.  I think the word macrocyte or something like that was used, something along

that line anyhow.  I am glad I am not the only one with this condition.  I was

quite worried about it.  Thanks again! 

 

Tracie in Maine