Hi, my names is Gillian. I have recently had a bone marrow biopsy because of a high red platelet count. My haematologist phoned me yesterday to say I also have slightly raised white blood cells and minor scarring in the bone marrow. He said he is doing further testing because of this but the results will take 6 to 8 weeks. My question is, does scarring in the bone marrow always mean cancer or can it be something else. When I Google it I just get directed to cancer websites.
Thank you, Gilll
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A great big welcome to our forum and you are obviously concerned. @GDM2810
Personally I would be wary of Googling.
Your question really is best asked of your specialist nurse, Haematologist or GP they know your whole medically history.
Further tests are usually to rule different things in or out. We are very complex beings.
I do realise that 6-8 weeks for the results to come back will seem a very long time for you.
Look after yourself and be kind to yourself, waiting and not knowing is horrible and please do let us know what they your medical team say
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Hi Gillian,
Welcome to the Blood Cancer UK forum!
Thank you for posting and sharing your experience. It’s really understandable to be worried about your results whilst waiting to hear back about these further tests.
I can see @Erica has already given some great advice here. But, in answer to your question, bone marrow scarring is not always caused by blood cancer. There are, in fact, several different types of condition that can cause this, including:
- Certain infectious diseases
- Auto-immune disorders
- Blood cancers
- Other blood disorders
I hope this information helps. But, if we can be of any further assistance, please don’t hesitate to contact our Support Line on 0808 2080 888 to speak to our of our Support Services Nurses.
Kind regards,
Tom
Support Services Manager
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