Blood Disorders
Description
When a problem occurs in your blood, it can affect your entire body. Blood disorders can occur in many forms, but they all affect the production of blood or its components, such as blood cells, hemoglobin, blood proteins and coagulation.
Blood abnormalities often represent disorders of other organs in the body and symptoms are sometimes vague and nonspecific. Diagnosis primarily involves studying the blood and blood components and possibly the bone marrow through laboratory testing. Laboratory testing is a key component of detection, diagnosis and treatment of blood disorders.
When people are diagnosed with a blood condition and referred to Rocky Mountain Cancer Centers, many are intimidated by the thought of going to a “cancer center” for treatment. They may be afraid they have cancer rather than simply a blood disorder. However, hematologists are the most appropriate specialists to treat blood conditions, so frequently hematology patients are treated at a location or facility where cancer patients are also treated. This is nothing to worry about.
Blood disorder types inclue:
- Anemia
- Iron Deficiency
- Vitamin B-12 Deficiency
- Red Cell Destruction
- Hemolytic Anemia
- Hereditary Disorders of Hemoglobin
- Sickle Cell Disease
- Thalassemia
- Bone Marrow Failure
- Myelodysplasia
- Aplastic Anemia
- Bleeding Disorders
- Von Willebrand Disease
- Hemophilia
- Platelet Disorders
- Thrombocytopenia
- Platelet Dysfunction
- Blood Clotting Disorders
- Deep Venous Thrombosis
- Pulmonary Embolism
- Antiphospholipid Antibody Syndrome
- Hypercoagulable States
- Myeloproliferative Disorders
- Myelofibrosis
- Polycythemia Vera
- Essential Thrombocythemia
- Leukemia
- Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia (ALL)
- Acute Myelocytic Leukemia (AML)
- Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL)
- Chronic Myelocytic Leukemia (CML)
- Lymphoma
- Hodgkin’s Disease
- Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma
- White Blood Cell Disorders
- Increased or Decreased White Blood Cells
- Plasma Cell Disorders
- Multiple Myeloma
- Monoclonal Gammopathy of Undetermined Significance (MGUS)
- Waldenström’s macroglobulinemia
- Amyloidosis
- Immune Disorders
- Gammaglobulin Deficiency
- Immune Damage of Blood and other Cells
- Neuroimmune Diseases
- Miscellaneous
- Myelodysplasia
- Refractory Hyperlipidemia
Common Treatment Options
There are a large variety of hematological diseases, so the course of treatment will depend on your specific diagnosis. Generally, there are several methods of treatment available for blood disorders, including:
- Oral medications
- Injections
- Blood transfusions
- Anticoagulation therapy
- Locations
- Doctors
- Conditions