lymphocytes count

[mali8812]

Hi ! I am concerned about my blood work. I recently had a blood work done and my absolute lymphocyte count was 4806 and the quest range is 850-3900. at the time i had this test, i had pain in my neck maybe because i slept awkward and it was there even after for 2-3 days. the last time i had a test done was in jan 2019 and at that time i had a viral infection and it was 11.7 percent while normal range is 22-43 percent. last time before that was in june 2018 and it was normal however in march 2018 it was slightly elevated but i had no infection at that time.

all other values are normal. my cholesterol triglycerides is high. its 524 without fasting. i am low on ferritin and vit d. please help. is it cancer ? i saw my GP and he thought it could be the cold and if am concerned, he told me to get the blood checked by hematologist.

[Ken_PA]

"i would think that people with leukemia even in beginning stages would also have high wbc, wouldnt they?"
Yes, but usually not very. On the other hand, almost anything is possible.

"So can a single lymphocyte figure suggest that it could be leukemia ?"
It's a stretch. We'd have to look at other factors - like what is your age, and your family history? What is a believable  alternate diagnosis?

"i did have inflammation on my neck and back when i got tested due to awkward sleeping position."
That helps somewhat with an alternate diagnosis.

[mali8812]

i would think that people with leukemia even in beginning stages would also have high wbc, wouldnt they? So can a single lymphocyte figure suggest that it could be leukemia ? i did have inflammation on my neck and back when i got tested due to awkward sleeping position.

[Ken_PA]

Hi, there's no reason to jump into thinking it's cancer. People with the leukemia called CLL in advanced stages can have counts at 20,000 or even 100,000. Your 4806 is likely resulting from a common virus or some other inflammation.

Still, it is not possible to say that someone at 4806 doesn't have leukemia in beginning stages. So that's why your doc gives the option of going for advanced and expensive testing to rule out leukemia. I'd think it would be more reasonable for you to go for CBCs every 2-3 weeks or so. If your count goes back down, you can mostly stop worrying about cancer.

4806 is "elevated", but that does not mean that cancer is at all certain; besides, cancer is not even likely at that mild elevation.

Good luck to you. Btw, low vit D is associated with non-cancer inflammatory conditions.