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Question to anyone familar with #TransHealthcare #Hematology
Is there a relationship between elevated #WBC (#neutrophils, #lymphocytes, #monocytes) & #Platelets, decreased #RBC, #Hemocrit, #Anemia, #Hgb, #mpv and #HRT for male to female #transgender individuals with no other evidence of blood disease, infection or #cancer?
#CTScans are clean, #BoneMarrowBiopsy clean. Doc wants to repeat however.
Of late, I'm questioning the doc that referred me to oncology. His NPs misdiagnosed cellulitis as a DVT, gave me an nearly expired tetnus booster, didn't read my chart for a year, didn't review prescriptions & was unaware I was on hrt for over a year. Overperscribing bp meds to the point where I nearly passed out and wrecked my work truck & passed out several times while standing.
Then there's the whole thing about making me strip nearly naked for EKGs, chest and knee xrays.
@MoonshotErin Since I am not an expert on these type of issues out of curiosity I pasted your question to Chat-GPT this was it's answer. Take it with a grain of salt and do more research before accepting them.
For male-to-female transgender individuals undergoing hormone replacement therapy (HRT), it's important to recognize that HRT can have significant effects on the blood, although some findings, like the ones you're describing, may warrant further investigation.
— (1/7)
Potential Relationships Between HRT and Blood Values:
Elevated White Blood Cells (WBC):
Neutrophils, Lymphocytes, Monocytes: These can be elevated for various reasons, including stress on the body or hormonal shifts. In transgender women undergoing HRT (usually involving estrogen and anti-androgens), immune modulation can occur, which may influence WBC counts.
— (2/7)
Platelets:
Elevated platelet levels can be influenced by estrogen, as estrogen is known to increase the risk of clotting (a reason why blood clot risk is carefully monitored in transgender women on HRT). However, elevated platelets alone, with no other clotting-related symptoms or issues, might still be within a range caused by hormonal influence rather than a blood disorder.
— (3/7)
Decreased RBC, Hematocrit, Hemoglobin (Hgb):
Estrogen tends to suppress erythropoiesis (the production of red blood cells), which can lead to decreased red blood cells (RBC), hemoglobin, and hematocrit. Mild anemia is not uncommon in trans women on HRT because testosterone, a potent stimulator of red blood cell production, is reduced during hormone therapy.
— (4/7)
Mean Platelet Volume (MPV):
Low MPV, when seen in combination with other blood changes, might be indicative of a reaction to changes in the bone marrow or an overall shift in platelet production dynamics. However, if your bone marrow biopsy and other tests (like CT scans) are clear, this could be related to hormonal changes rather than underlying blood pathology.
— (5/7)
Repeat Testing and Monitoring:
Given that you've had a clean CT scan and bone marrow biopsy, and your doctor still wants to repeat the tests, they might be looking for patterns over time. Blood values can fluctuate during hormone therapy, so repeat testing is often used to track any emerging trends, especially to rule out secondary causes such as subtle changes in marrow activity, stress, or other underlying conditions that might not be evident immediately.
— (6/7)
Next Steps:
If no signs of infection, cancer, or blood disease are present and the bone marrow biopsy is clean, it's possible that these changes could be due to HRT. However, continued monitoring is important to ensure there isn’t another underlying cause that’s being missed.
It might also be beneficial to discuss with your healthcare provider the potential role of HRT in your blood test results and whether any adjustments to your regimen could stabilize your levels.
— (7/7)
@Susan_Larson_TN yeah, I'm kinda in limbo because HRT answers a lot of it, but I don't want the doc to overlook something more serious