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Scared I have leukemia

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kristi76528
kristi76528

I have been a nervous wreck and stressed and anxious since I had a health scare in early January. My doctor did a CBC and my WBC came back slightly elevated. 12.4. I’m scared now I have leukemia. She didn’t mention doing anything special because of this. Should I be concerned? I don’t know what to do. 

0 likes, 2 replies

2 Replies

  • sweetmelissa
    sweetmelissa kristi76528

    Posted

    A slightly high WBC is okay and actually normal.  Some people naturally have a slightly higher WBC and others is because we come in contact with germs daily..  That is our immune systems job to attack and destroy any outside evaders, such as viruses, germs, bacteria..ect.  and as it does this, our counts can become higher.   A person with any type of cancer is more likely to have an extremely high count, along with other blood test being off.  If you are still concerned, you can always have your doctor retest you in another 4 weeks to make sure it does not keep going higher, just for peace of mind..  Best wishes..
  • anitalou
    anitalou kristi76528

    Posted

    Hi Kristi - please take a deep breath. A LOT of deep breaths! You do NOT have leukemia. A slightly elevated WBC has many causes, most often a slight infection (like a cold or a sinus infection) or some medications can cause a slight increase. If your doctor isn't concerned, neither should you be!

    Also, the elevated WBC seen in leukemia is hugely elevated, 10s or even 100s of thousands, and the white blood cells themselves are abnormal, and this would have shown up on the CBC. Your blood is fine smile

    If you have ongoing health anxiety like this, please do tell your doctor about that! It is treatable, and you deserve to have your energy dedicated to living your life, not worrying about problems that you don't have.

    best wishes!

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