Hello all,
I’m not sure if this is the right place to come for a chat really but I thought there’d be no harm in creating a post and seeing if anyone can shed some light/share their experiences with me. If I shouldn’t be posting here, I really do apologise.
I am a 27 y/o female and I’ve had a slightly raised platelet count that was noticed this year in routine bloods for low iron. I didn’t realise but it turns out my platelets have continuously been a little bit raised since 2020. I’ve been back and forth the GP this year having blood tests as they wanted to keep an eye on this and they’re not coming down to where they should be (GP said that’s <400), they’re just fluctuating by 20/30. I didn’t think much of it to be honest but I saw a different GP the other day who said they’d need to consult Heamatology to ask for some guidance - I asked why this was as generally, I feel ok and she said certain types of blood cancers can be linked to high platelets. I didn’t expect that, I just thought this was all related to my low iron (which has been improving).
She asked about family history of cancers, I explained several family members have had various types of cancer. As for closest blood relatives, my Mum has had cancer twice over the last 5 years, the first time being non-hodgkins lymphoma and sadly when the cancer returned, it was a brain tumour (although currently she’s had all her treatment and is doing great, doctors are really happy with her progress).
I’ve done some research - as you do - and I don’t really think my platelets are that high to be honest compared to others when reading various articles and forums. I’m also a little confused as some articles say <450 is normal, others say <400. They peaked around 560 in March but generally have fluctuated between 430-470 since 2020. No blood test has shown they’ve been below 400 since 2019.
My initial visit to the GP was due to feeling dizzy frequently, noticeably fatigued and having reoccurring headaches and having had low iron in the past, I thought it would just be that. I mentioned to the GP that I also get a strange tingling feeling in my hands and feet, as well as ringing in my ears a few times a day - neither painful or causing me much bother, just something I’d noticed. I also have started getting Campbell De Morgan spots this year which was new for me. The iron tablets definitely improved the headaches but the other symptoms have remained.
I just wanted a chat really to see if anyone else had been in a similar situation and whilst I know this forum can’t offer medical advice, I just wondered if in others experience, the above platelet counts I’ve mentioned seem only marginally raised? I don’t know if there’s limits when it comes to various diagnosis (eg: <500 normally not concerning) or if there’s anything I should be given a sort of ‘heads up’ on whilst I wait for the GP to chat with Heamatology. I’m not feeling too worried, particularly because I feel ok in myself - all the symptoms I have aren’t causing me grief, just more something I noticed - but I don’t know, just thought it would be worthwhile chatting through.
Anyone else’s experiences would be appreciated.
All the best, T xx