I got my test results yesterday, several days earlier than expected. I’m impressed. That was FAST! It took only five days…

Let’s see. The thing that concerns me the most is that my hemoglobin, hematocrit, and red blood cell count are still slightly below the normal range. Just slightly, so no huge worries. But I can’t just sit back and ignore it. After all, anemia is the “A” in CRAB, so bringing those numbers UP will be my main concern in the next few months, years, decades, centuries…

My white blood cells have also slipped under the normal range, again just slightly (my result is 4.38 instead of the 4.4 it should be). But they’ve been lower in the past, so again, no worries.

Okay, now for the rest. First, the bad stuff:

• ESR has gone up a bit since my November 2014 tests: it’s 59 mm, was 46. Normal range is 2-25 mm. BUT: it’s been in the 90s in the past, so no big deal.
• Calcium has gone up slightly, from 8.9 to 9.1. It’s been as high as 9.4, though, and in any case it’s within the normal range.
• Uric acid: this has gone slightly over the normal range, so it must be monitored.
• I have “insufficient” levels of vitamin D! Ouch. Well, I stopped taking it about a week before my tests, so what this result tells me is that I need to be taking it ALWAYS. I started again this morning.
• Free light chains (serum): They are up again. The seesaw effect. But not to a worrisome level. They’ve been MUCH higher in the past but since 2013 seemed to have settled down, except for a bit of seesawing. So, again, no worries.

Good stuff:

• Creatinine: stable as a rock, slightly lower than it was in November; way within the normal range.
• Creatinine clearance: better than last tests: 103 instead of 145 (the high end of the range is 151 mm/min). Excellent.
• 24-hour creatinine is also better than it was in November.
• LDH has gone from 210 to 175, which is lovely. Normal range: <280.
• Total protein: stable.
• B2M, down a notch compared to my November tests, therefore stable.
• CRP: same as it was in November. Perfect.
• No Bence Jones protein, as always.
• Total IgG: it’s still high, but luckily the trend is a downward one. It has been creeping slowly back down with every test…
• My other Igs are stable, even though practically nonexistent. I’m used to that.
• M-spike has also gone down quite a bit, as has the monoclonal component. Very good.
• Parathyroid: lower than previous tests, so that’s good. Anyway, it’s way within the normal range, where it has been since 2013, in fact.
• Liver function (ALT, AST, GGT) is perfect, as always.
• Ferritin and iron levels are in the normal range. In fact, my ferritin is up a bit compared to November.

I’m seeing my doctor next week, so if I have anything to add to what I’ve written here, I will do so.

Well, it could have been worse, and it could have been better. But, as the lab doctor wrote on my test results, there are NO significant variations compared to previous tests. And that is always good at this stage…!!! 🙂