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1108194 tn?1378424522

Flow cytometry granulocytic precursor

What is a subpopulation of granulocytic precursor with abherrent expression to CD56 @20%?

Is this bad?  A family member has anemia not caused by iron or b vitamins.  I kust need help understanding this from the Flow cytometry.  
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1081992 tn?1389903637
COMMUNITY LEADER
"Soursop is anti inflammatory."
Okay, so what to do is identify the Method of Action. Then you might find another plant with the same MOA.
- e.g. Aspirin and other salicylates interfere with Cox (cyclo-oxygenase) enzymes, while Boswellia does with LOX-5 (lipo-oxygenase)

"I will get him going."
Should also help psychologically. It's a mood elevator and anti-stress. Exercised muscle also produces an anti-inflammatory called IL-10.

"I tired of mowing his lawn on my lunch .lol. Just kidding."
I use an old-fashioned non-motor reel mower. We were meant to move, without being a fanatic about it.

"Ill let you know how it goes on Monday."
Great.

"Let me know if you think of anything else."
I will.

"Thank you again and enjoy your weekend!"
You, too! Watch out for Tasmanian Devils.
Helpful - 2
1081992 tn?1389903637
COMMUNITY LEADER
I don't have any social media, no.

---- what is the difference between autoimmune and auto inflammatory?

Autoimmunity requires the presence of auto antibodies -- antibodies which bind to the body's own molecules.

-- what does 'bind' mean?
that's like how a key fits a lock. Your house key won't go into your car. Or it's like how a glove fits a baseball after lots of use; it won't fit a larger or smaller baseball, or fit a cube or pyramid shaped baseball.

-- what is self?
before any antibody gets approved for use, it gets checked to see if it can bind to anything in your own body. But sometimes that safety check fails - like if it approves thinking of a tomato as being a dandelion and is not self

(-- are auto ABs the only way to get autoimmunity?
no. Since there is almost infinite complexity, I'll just mention that killer T-cells can also directly attack the self.)

========================

--- what is auto inflammatory?
That's when the body damages itself, but no auto ABs are involved. When certain people die from eating a peanut or sesame seed, there are no auto Abs. The same is true for EoE: no AUTO ABs. But there is an excess of inflammatory biochemicals involved, which harm the self.

Many docs won't use or know the term auto inflammatory, but any doc knowledgeable about MCAS would know.

=========================

The famous ANA test checks for the existence of a number of auto ABs. There is a common misconception that if the ANA test is negative then the body is not harming itself.
Helpful - 1
1 Comments
Looks like the Hemoologist diagnosing as MGUS.  She sent him for another CBC and Metobolic panel this morning.  I read thats MGUS is not a major cause of anemia.  I need to see what she told him.  Stay tuned
1081992 tn?1389903637
COMMUNITY LEADER
If in future you'd ever like to read through this whole thread again, I made a copy here: https://web.archive.org/web/20240518102311/https://www.medhelp.org/posts/Leukemia-and-Lymphoma/Flow-cytometry-granulocytic-precursor/show/3080288
Helpful - 1
2 Comments
Oh boy... medhelp mangled the url. You'd have to copy/paste the whole url starting with the https://web.archive... part.
I copied it and emailed it to myself.   Are you on any other platforms?
1081992 tn?1389903637
COMMUNITY LEADER
Btw, when I'd said that "We were meant to move...", I hope you understood that I was not criticizing you about the lawn mowing. I was, I guess, saying the type of encouragement to give to somebody like your father. That's what I did here, those many years ago.
Helpful - 1
1081992 tn?1389903637
COMMUNITY LEADER
What are antibodies?

Some immune cells are killers. Imagine that you have a spray tank of herbicide. But you don't know how to tell which plants in your yard are to be killed. So I come along first and put tiny tiny red flags on the dandelions. You know very well how to spot the red flags, so you can now spray and kill the dandelions. Another day, I put the flags on nettles. And so on.

But one day, I go awry. To me, young tomato plants mistakenly look the same as dandelions; so I put the red flags on them. You come along and spray the tomato plants. That is autoimmunity.
Helpful - 1
1081992 tn?1389903637
COMMUNITY LEADER
"For the EoE we went Gluten, Dairy and Egg free.  D-limonene to 2 wks, Saccromyces boullardi, tumeric, astragalus, astaxanthin, marshmallow root, DGL.  The esophagus rings were completely gone in 3-4 months.  He has tested zero for the last 3 years.  I think we found it when he was 17.  We made power shakes with nuts ,seeds,coconut oil , nut butter, almond milk fruit and rice protein.  He was 5'10 and down to 114 lbs.  Scary thin."

Interesting. That takes some mulling, thanks.

"The doctors were amazed at the recovery."
I bet. They could have done a Case Report and gotten published, maybe. Much better approach than implanted feeding tube. Tell me sometime your thinking that went on.

When you gave his Eos count, you were referring to snip biopsy (per High Power Field) and not a blood draw? Isn't 450 per HPF ultra ultra high??
Helpful - 1
1 Comments
The Eos count from the AnA test . The specialist gave him Prilosec and it made him so sick with some kind if weight gainer powder that was all oil and sugar.  I got fed up and researched everything myself. Neither if us has taken any form if prescription drugs since.  
1081992 tn?1389903637
COMMUNITY LEADER
"...my nephew.  He got Guillume barre when he was 2"
Aha, so I'll suggest strongly that you approach every medical condition (including possibly in you) with the forethought: there is an Fx of immune hyperactivity/dysfunction. But most docs won't care, only the wise ones will.

So much is unknown about the immune system. Ten years from now, 2024 will be thought of by docs as being in the Flintstone Age of immunology/rheumatology.
Helpful - 1
1081992 tn?1389903637
COMMUNITY LEADER
"Oh his IGA is high and monocytes. IGG was a bit high now on the border.  Both light chains sre high with a good ratio."

Aha, you have some advanced knowledge yourself. What you wrote there immediately makes me think of monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS). Once again, we see that phrase "undetermined significance".

So also once again, I'd refer to being anti-inflammatory and overall healthy as possible. I hope he has willpower  :)

I took care of my father for two years when he had a stroke and then lymphoma. So I know that some family member looking over them can have a big impact. I actually got him in better shape than he had been in maybe 15 years or more. You are very motivated, which is great. Bravo to you.
Helpful - 1
1 Comments
Cudos to you as well.  Its so tough when they get older. Im a single mom with a 23yr old with EoE.  I healed his stage 4 with diet and herbs.  His Eosinophils were like 450 now zero!  I do alot of reserach on natural remedies and really try to find answers to these test results.  These were over my pay grade. Lol. I so appreciate everything..  Truly
1081992 tn?1389903637
COMMUNITY LEADER
One more thing for today (and I'm trying to not overburden you): what the hematologist/oncologist is saying is his probable diagnosis is CCUS, ,which stands for clonal cytopenia of undetermined significance.

Let's focus on the phrase "undetermined significance". That tells us that they don't quite know what to make of it. Which is good because having a mystery condition is much much better than having cancer.

In this case, being "clonal" is still not-cancer. You might run across the term "neoplasm" which also can be not-cancer. So all in all, things are looking pretty good for him. I hope you can relax a bit  :)
Helpful - 1
1081992 tn?1389903637
COMMUNITY LEADER
Wombat, do you remember me saying that your dad might have an overactive immune system?

So it's important to know if he has had testing for that, for what are called "inflammatory markers". Example tests are CRP, ESR, IL-6.

If he is highly inflammatory, then maybe he would benefit from taking anti-inflammatories.
Helpful - 1
1 Comments
What about an ANA test?
1081992 tn?1389903637
COMMUNITY LEADER
You're a good daughter, he's lucky to have you watching out for him  :)

You should mention to any doc he sees that there is lupus in the family and he might have an overactive immune system.
Helpful - 1
1081992 tn?1389903637
COMMUNITY LEADER
"he had increased iron stores without the rings"
That's a very complicated thing. Iron is necessary to make red blood cells. During a severe infection, iron gets shifted into monocytes (aka macrophages); so there is less iron available to make the red blood cells. Monocytes/macrophages are made in the marrow, they are immune cells that fight infection.

The absence of iron rings in the marrow more or less means there was not some bad reason for the increased iron in the marrow.  
Helpful - 1
1081992 tn?1389903637
COMMUNITY LEADER
"His FISH came back normal too."
That's a good sign, of course. They might just declare this to be watch-and-wait to see what happens.

"...got a virus for 2 months"
If they didn't test and find an actual virus, that could have been just inflammation. For example, if you get the flu then the symptoms you feel are all from immune system reaction. From biochemicals like interferon and cytokines.

Helpful - 1
1 Comments
Sorry just posted this. Thank you so much for answering.  This has been very stressful. My mom was ill at the same time.  This one was a nasty bug.  He lost appetite and lost 30lbs as well.  This is the comment from the bone exam. The bone marrow is hypercellular with panmyeloid hyperplasia and occasional smaller then normal megakaryocytes noted; however no convincing morphologic evidence of clonal hemopathy is seen.  No abnormal infiltrates are seen.   This also said he had increased iron stores without the rings.  
1081992 tn?1389903637
COMMUNITY LEADER
Hi, the simple answer is that this does NOT necessarily mean there is a blood cancer such as leukemia. Since this is an advanced test, that tells me that at this point there is some uncertainty about what has been going on and elaborate tests are necessary.

But yes, it could be a blood cancer. **However** what you want to hope for is that it is actually the result of some unusual immune system condition. So what I'd immediately look for is the presence of a family history of some unusual immune system conditions. I see in your posting history that you talk of someone having Eosinophilic Esophagitis, so that fits.

-------------------

Advanced answer:

Flow cytometry examines immune system cells and sees what molecules are on their surfaces. CD56 is a molecule that is typically found on certain immune cells called Natural Killer cells. Those NK cells typically fight infection. When immune cells are being active, that's called inflammation.

There is a wholly different type of immune cells called granulocytic precursors. They should NOT ordinarily have CD56 on them (it is aberrant/abnormal to find them there). But sometimes, when an overactive immune system runs amok, it can produce unusual results in a flow cytometry test. The results can look like there might be cancer, but there actually is no cancer. It is benign inflammation.

And listen: a subset of granulocytic precursors involve the immune cells called Eosinophils! So there is a very possible connection, and it's imporatnt to know that immune cells running amok can cause anemia. So that's what to hope for and definitely to bring up to the hematologist.

Good luck. I think you will get good news in the end.
Helpful - 1
3 Comments
This is great. Thank you so much for responding.  He had mild anemia,then got a virus for 2 months. RBC, hemoglobin and hemocrit are low and RDW  and monocytes are high.  He is 84 and got an infection in is toe bone from a biopsy 2 years ago and his sister had lupus.  His FISH came back normal too.  

Sorry to bother.  Here is additional info:
Next generation sequencing studies (performed at Neogenomics; see NTP24-036360  for full details):
  ASXL1 G646Wfs*12 (variant allele frequency = 38.5%) ; SETBP1 I871T (variant allele frequency = 38.0%) ; U2AF1 R156H (variant allele frequency = 46.8%)

   ASXL1 mutations can be seen in various myeloid neoplasms, and are associated with a poor prognosis in MDS, AML, MPN and CMML.
  SETBP1 mutations can be seen in various myeloid neoplasms, and are associated with disease progression in MDS and a poor prognosis in CMML.
   U2AF1 mutations can be seen in various myeloid neoplasms, and are associated with a poor prognosis in MDS, MPN and AML.
  
COMMENT:
The finding of ASXL1, SETBP1; U2AF1  DNA variants in the context of anemia and a lack of significant morphologic dysplasia is supportive of a diagnosis of clonal cytopenia of undetermined significance (CCUS) as the likely etiology of this patient's anemia.

The bone marrow is hypercellular with panmyeloid hyperplasia and occasional smaller than normal megakaryocytes noted; however no convincing morphologic dysplasia is seen.  No abnormal infiltrates are seen.

Thoughts?
Sorry to bother.  Here is additional info:
Next generation sequencing studies (performed at Neogenomics; see NTP24-036360  for full details):
  ASXL1 G646Wfs*12 (variant allele frequency = 38.5%) ; SETBP1 I871T (variant allele frequency = 38.0%) ; U2AF1 R156H (variant allele frequency = 46.8%)

   ASXL1 mutations can be seen in various myeloid neoplasms, and are associated with a poor prognosis in MDS, AML, MPN and CMML.
  SETBP1 mutations can be seen in various myeloid neoplasms, and are associated with disease progression in MDS and a poor prognosis in CMML.
   U2AF1 mutations can be seen in various myeloid neoplasms, and are associated with a poor prognosis in MDS, MPN and AML.
  
COMMENT:
The finding of ASXL1, SETBP1; U2AF1  DNA variants in the context of anemia and a lack of significant morphologic dysplasia is supportive of a diagnosis of clonal cytopenia of undetermined significance (CCUS) as the likely etiology of this patient's anemia.

The bone marrow is hypercellular with panmyeloid hyperplasia and occasional smaller than normal megakaryocytes noted; however no convincing morphologic dysplasia is seen.  No abnormal infiltrates are seen.

Thoughts?
1081992 tn?1389903637
COMMUNITY LEADER
"specialist gave him Prilosec"
Clinicians are typically not mystery solvers. They just do pattern matching. Patient has a stomach or lower esophagus problem? Then give Prilosec and get the patient out the door. Clinicians have to be quick that way, or else the other patients would be stacking up waiting their turn.

The worst place to go for mystery conditions is the ER. ER docs are great at what they are supposed to do (heart attacks, trauma, etc), but have no experience with solving immune system mysteries. Many people (not you) mistakenly go repeatedly to ERs over mystery conditions, because they have no primary.
Helpful - 0
1081992 tn?1389903637
COMMUNITY LEADER
"The Eos count from the AnA test"
Well, no. ANA means Anti Nuclear Antibodies. Antibodies are shaped like tiny tiny lobsters with two claws that grab onto specific things; one purpose is to mark invaders for destruction by killer immune cells. Antibodies are not cells.

Eosinophils are white blood cells. They normally swarm and attack parasites that are larger than the Eos. Like Lilliputians attacking Gulliver. In EoE, they run amok and attack his own esophagus lining. They wouldn't be measured on the same test as ANA, though maybe they might appear on some same sheet that you received?

Eos should not normally be found on the esophagus, but Mast Cells are normally found on the esophagus. When MCs go haywire, they secrete biochemicals that attract Eos to the esophagus. Then the Eos do their damage.

I am making the distinction because knowledge of how the immune system works is crucial for anybody who wants to treat themselves and not just follow instructions like the typical, passive patients.

Helpful - 0
1 Comments
Very interesting. I try to read up as much as possible.  Always learning.  Great information, thank you!
1081992 tn?1389903637
COMMUNITY LEADER
"Cudos to you as well."
Thanks.  
"Its so tough when they get older. Im a single mom with a 23yr old with EoE.  I healed his stage 4 with diet and herbs.  His Eosinophils were like 450 now zero!"
Do tell, what did you give him? I have a cousin who had EoE. You might be aware that although it is the Eos that do the damage, it is almost certainly the Mast Cells that orchestrate things. There's a saying that "Mast Cell disorders are seen by many doctors, but recognized by few". They have over 100 inputs/sensors (receptors) and produce over 200 biochemicals (mediators). So they can do a lot, good and bad.

Any Fx of flushing, itching, or bad allergies?

"I do alot of reserach on natural remedies and really try to find answers to these test results.  These were over my pay grade. Lol. I so appreciate everything..  Truly "

I am very happy to have been of help. It's good to talk to people like minded. We have two weeks left.

Helpful - 0
1 Comments
For the EoE we went Gluten, Dairy and Egg free.  D-limonene to 2 wks, Saccromyces boullardi, tumeric, astragalus, astaxanthin, marshmallow root, DGL.  The esophagus rings were completely gone in 3-4 months.  He has tested zero for the last 3 years.  I think we found it when he was 17.  We made power shakes with nuts ,seeds,coconut oil , nut butter, almond milk fruit and rice protein.  He was 5'10 and down to 114 lbs.  Scary thin.  The doctors were amazed at the recovery.
1081992 tn?1389903637
COMMUNITY LEADER
"Yes he takes boswellia as well.  He has bad knees so its been hard to get him moving. He tries.  He has a winged scapula as well.  I told him to do push ups on the wall.  I was going to give him soursop but his blood pressure is on the lower side."

Aha, then you are the herbalist. And the drill sergeant. Cool, you remind me of me  :)

There are also phytosterols, such as beta sitosterol, campesterol and stigmasterol. They are in seed oils, and I personally think the hysteria against seed oils is unfounded. And trendy.

You might devise exercise for him using dumbbells, kettlebell or power bands. High rep, low intensity.

I hadn't heard of soursop.
Helpful - 0
1 Comments
Soursop is anti inflammatory.  Fruit tree tea. I will get him going.  I tired of mowing his lawn on my lunch .lol. Just kidding.  Ill let you know how it goes on Monday.  Let me know if you think of anything else.  Thank you again and enjoy your weekend!
1081992 tn?1389903637
COMMUNITY LEADER
"He just had this bad virus for 2 months this year."
It could have been a very bad virus, or it could have been a hyperactive reaction to an ordinary virus. For example, there is such a medical condition known as 'post-viral syndrome', which can result from an ordinary virus but in which the immune system runs amok and gets changed forever. A powerfully bad reaction in the short term can lead to a chronic inflammatory condition over years and years.

"He did not get the vaccine."
Good.
Helpful - 0
1 Comments
That happened to my nephew.  He got Guillume barre when he was 2.  He was a quadriplegic and after a miracle. He is 30 and Walking. Driving. Working.  Amazing
1081992 tn?1389903637
COMMUNITY LEADER
"What about an ANA test? "

Sure, because what he has *might* lead to autoimmunity, and also he does have a relative with lupus. Be aware that there is also "auto inflammatory", which is different and doesn't relate to ANA antibodies. It gets super complicated.

Did he happen to get bad after Covid or after the vaccine(s)? Either can stir up the immune system in bad ways.
Helpful - 0
1 Comments
He did not get the vaccine.  He just had this bad virus for 2 months this year. I can send the list if tests with him to take to the hemoologist on Monday.
1081992 tn?1389903637
COMMUNITY LEADER
As for what to take?

It seems that his primary does Integrative Medicine (standard and alternative med)? That's good. I would suggest your dad to be as anti-inflammatory as possible.

Turmeric is anti-inflammatory, but there are many others including ginger, frankincense, red-purple anthocyanins in plants, etc. He has to find which ones work for him.

Plus EXERCISE is anti-inflammatory.  Take him for walks, make him do a hundred pushups  :)    Plenty of sleep.
Helpful - 0
1 Comments
Yes he takes boswellia as well.  He has bad knees so its been hard to get him moving. He tries.  He has a winged scapula as well.  I told him to do push ups on the wall.  I was going to give him soursop but his blood pressure is on the lower side.
1081992 tn?1389903637
COMMUNITY LEADER
It's not a bother at all, Wombat. Keep in mind that time is limited, as the site will close operations on May 31st. So don't delay in followups, or with any questions whatsoever.

His new (very advanced) genetic testing info says this:

He has something that is NOT cancer. But in some patients, it can eventually turn into a blood cancer. I don't know a number, of what % turn into a blood cancer, but my guess is that only a LOW % do. By LOW, I mean maybe only 2-5% chance per year or some similarly low figure. Hopefully, his doc can give a number.

------------------------------------------

So this latest info is not really any bad news, it just give a reason for his anemia: there are some genetic changes that he got when he was older. The changes are NOT cancer. The changes did make a drop in his number of Red Blood Cells. Those changes might one day affect other blood cells such as monocytes, in unpredictable ways.

My guess is the the docs will adopt a "watch and wait" approach, with regular monitoring tests:
- the simple and very common CBC blood test, which just counts the blood cells
- sometimes a "blood smear" test, in which a human looks at blood with a microscope, to see if any blood cells have odd appearance

Is that what they decided to do?

Helpful - 0
2 Comments
Thank you. I didn't know the site was closing...   Any thoughts on improving his anemia?  He is on papaya leaf which has drastically Improved jis low platelets.  Beet root. Tumeric, Astragalus.  His B6 was a bit low and his primary put him on a supplement which fixed that.  He eats well., not alot if meat.  Fish once in a while.  He isn't on any prescriptions.  
Oh his IGA is high and monocytes. IGG was a bit high now on the border.  Both light chains sre high with a good ratio.  
1081992 tn?1389903637
COMMUNITY LEADER
"This has been very stressful"
It certainly is. That's why I'm trying my best to help you :)  Your latest info also points to not-cancer:

"This one was a nasty bug.  He lost appetite and lost 30lbs as well."
So his immune system was ultra stirred up in response to a severe infection.

"The bone marrow is hypercellular"
Immune cells are made in the marrow.
hypercellular = he had lots more cells than usual

"with panmyeloid hyperplasia"
that refer to the type of cells that increased, which includes immune cells

"no convincing morphologic evidence of clonal hemopathy is seen"
That's exactly what you do want to hear, because clonal=cancer. But his increased cells are not clonal.
morphologic = the way the cells look under microscope

"No abnormal infiltrates are seen"
Also good news.


SUMMARY
His marrow cells were increased in response to a severe infection, NOT because of multiplying due to cancer.
  
Helpful - 0
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