Monitoring blood work related to lung cancer

High CO2 levels are also related to COPD and other lung conditions. Ask for a referral for a pulmonologist and a pulmonary function test to get a better understanding.

Thanks for your comment. I have 2 Pulmonologists, one for cancer the other for interstitial lung disease. I do regular pulmonary function tests which are moderate to severe loss and indicate I have pulmonary fibrosis (not COPD - restrictive vs. obstructive lung disease). I have multifocal lung cancer so there is always a nodule to watch. The drop in MCHC occurred after SBRT treatment on two nodules which caused a flareup in my pulmonary fibrosis and I am now on permanent O2 for exertion/sleep. So I am alert to any other cause impacting my breathing. I also am disturbed that Primary Care doctors tell patients that their blood work is normal when the reports indicate something is abnormal.

My Blood Calcium was high for years and I was never told, by my then PCP, that was a concern of any kind. I moved to another city and established with a new PCP and he caught that right away. That was the biggest reason he sent me for a lung screening. (Along with my smoking history). He said that was a sign of lung cancer. He was correct. I had a nodule that was confirmed to be adenocarcinoma. He is an internist. Very young, but extremely well educated and I feel he saved my life because of his knowledge. If you feel it should be further investigated, you may want to get a second opinion. Also, I learned that different testing labs get different results because they use different methods. From my experience only, Labcorp always comes back high or low on some of their readings where at Mayo clinic, they have come back normal range. When I questioned the differences, that is what was explained to me. God Bless and I pray for a good outcome for you.🙏❤️

Thanks for sharing your story.
Doctors are people and after training it depends on an individual's curiosity and discipline to look more deeply at exceptions. That is why it is really important to read reports and question things.
Hopefully, they will start programming test results to provide potential causes for out-of-range results even in the rarer situation. Primary Care will not have the depth to understand implications of certain relationships in the data.

Hi @vic83, I have regular labs completed, every 3-4 month. They are related to monitoring impacts of the targeted therapy that I take and to make sure my liver and kidneys are strong enough to handle the CT contrast. I have a CBC, complete metabolic profile, and creatine kinase. Nearly every time, I'll have some level that is outside the normal range. My oncologist is never concerned, but I always look into the values and ask about them. We do watch for any trends. So far, everything has come back into normal after a few tests. I don't see a MCHC included in my results. Do you see a second doctor that you ask; pulmonologist or oncologist?

Thanks for your input.
I have noticed that some test panels don't always have all the elements. My MCHC was in my CBC WITH AUTO DIFFERENTIAL
I have multiple issues (multifocal lung cancer, interstitial pulmonary fibrosis, pulmonary hypertension, and a cardiac stent) with multiple Specialists at Mayo, so management of blood testing is a challenge. And these medical issues impact each other. Even my osteoporosis drug matters. The Endocrinologist has me staying long term on a specific medication because it has anti-bone tumor properties and I have cancer!
I use my Primary now to be sure I maintain a schedule for basic blood testing to identify anything going abnormal. And I need a credible base line of values because I know I may be given unusual medications in the future.
I am 90 miles from Mayo so I need local Primary for little things. But he obviously does not have the depth to manage complex situations. I have suggested to Mayo that for patients like me with complicated related conditions, there should be someone who does a high level review. Doctors need to think strategically because one thing can delay treatment of another. As an example, locally I discovered I had coronary blockage at same time as a CT scan showed probable cancer. I knew that the blood thinning medication required by a stent would delay any biopsy or surgery for 6 to 12 months. I was on the table and when they called out blockage, I reminded Cardiologist about my lung issue. They understood and put me on medication. I had lung cancer surgery 3 weeks later. I would not have wanted to wait on that!!!