Hi @emilysierra, Welcome to Mayo Connect. I’m sure this has been really scary for you and being referred to a hematologist just heightened your anxiety, right? It’s human nature for us to go directly to the ‘worst thing possible’. Although I’m not a medical professional, I’m a happy & healthy survivor of a serious blood cancer, Acute Myeloid Leukemia.

From what you’re telling me, it sounds like there is something more going on besides anemia. Any cause for anemia shouldn’t be dismissed but investigated for the underlying cause because this isn’t a normal state.

There can be many causes for the symptoms you’re describing and for anemia. With the low red blood count and the low hemoglobin, yes, you are technically anemic. However with anemia, the white blood count isn’t necessarily elevated abnormally.

Let me explain a little. When there is a higher than normal white blood count in a blood sample and a very low red count it could mean that the white cells are so numerous that they are overcrowding the red cells. This happens when bone marrow disease that’s causing overproduction of white blood cells also causes underproduction of red blood cells.

A hematologist is a specialist in treating blood disorders. Whether this is anemia or something else, seeing this specialist is the right thing to do to find the cause of your blood numbers, to get the facts and not speculate.

Do you know if a blood smear was run and were any blasts cells noted?