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Prostate Cancer | Last Active: 1 day ago | Replies (43)
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@stragale I thought I had already answered this but I don't see my reply, so I'll try again. I have had a full blood workup done. Here are some of the results: PSA 0.1, WBC 7.99, RBC 4.37, HGB 13.8, HCT 40.9%, MCV 93.6., etc. My oncologists, although serving at the VA Hospital in Seattle, are actually from the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. I think my complaints about weakness and fatigue are mostly due to the effects of ADT and loss of testosterone. Maybe my claim re anemia is overstated, but I started taking slow release iron pills and B12 vitamins.
~Wayne
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@waynerl Thanks for sharing your results. The reference "normal" ranges vary from lab to lab. The two labs that I have been using have the following ranges for RBC: 3.5-5.5 and 4.4-5.6. For Hb they are: 12.6-16.5 and 13.0-17.0. For Hct, they are 39.5-50% and 41-54%. Based on either of these reference ranges, it appears that your numbers are in the normal range, so perhaps your fatigue/anemia is due to something else.
My own latest numbers as of yesterday are: RBC, 3.33; Hb, 10.6; and Hct: 33.5. They have come up a bit from a month ago for no apparent reason, except for the possibility that it's from having done several acupuncture appointments. The improvements are consistent with one paper (not sure of its quality) showing benefits.
I was taking an iron supplement (GNC 65 mg) every other day. I stopped when further testing showed that i had high ferritin, transferrin, iron binding capacity and total iron. I do still take B12 as I'm doing a mostly vegan diet at this point. My B12 levels and folate are normal