Polycythemia can cause unexplained weight loss in some people.
Many people who have PV will also develop an enlarged spleen.
Your spleen filters your blood, so when you have polycythemia vera, the excess cells tend to collect in that organ.
Symptoms of an enlarged spleen include discomfort, pain or fullness in the upper left side of the abdomen, indigestion, and a loss of appetite.
Taking aspirin does help the polycythemia condition.
Low-dose aspirin (75-100 mg daily) is recommended in all PV patients without history of major bleeding or gastric intolerance.
Low-dose aspirin can safely prevent thrombotic complications in patients with polycythemia vera who have no contraindications to such treatment.
You can sometimes donate blood to some blood donation centers if you have polycythemia but others like Red Cross will not accept blood from people with polycythemia.
As a Polycythemia Vera patient, you can not give blood to the Red Cross.
You can go to blood centers where they will accept blood from a PV patient for what is referred to as “therapeutic phlebotomy.”
You will need to check with the respective blood center in your area.
Polycythemia is diagnosed through a blood test.
To diagnose polycythemia your doctor will draw some blood and send it off for testing where the polycythemia will either show up or not show up in the blood.
Polycythemia does get worse overtime.
The disease Polycythemia gets worse slowly, usually over many years.
It can be life-threatening if you don't get treatment, but the right care can help you live a long life.
Polycythemia does sometimes cause high blood pressure.
Polycythemia is also associated with an increased risk of blood clots (venous thrombosis, stroke, heart attack) and leukemia.
Sleep Apnea is the most common cause of polycythemia.
Polycythemia vera occurs when a mutation in a gene causes a problem with blood cell production.
Normally, your body regulates the number of each of the three types of blood cells you have red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets.
The lifespan of a person with polycythemia is between 1 and 1/2 years to 3 years without treatment if it has progressed too far.
However with treatment the lifespan of a person with polycythemia can be as high as 14 years to 20 years although some people may live longer.
The signs and symptoms of polycythemia include numbness, tingling, burning, or weakness in your hands, feet, arms or legs.
A feeling of fullness soon after eating and bloating or pain in your left upper abdomen due to an enlarged spleen. Unusual bleeding, such as a nosebleed or bleeding gums.
Painful swelling of one joint, often the big toe.
The differences between polycythemia and polycythemia vera is that polycythemia, also called erythrocytosis, refers to an increase in red blood cell mass, noted on laboratory evaluation as increased hemoglobin and hematocrit levels.
And polycythemia vera is a subtype of polycythemia and is associated with the overproduction of all 3 cell lines.
In rare cases polycythemia vera can turn into a form of leukemia called acute myeloid leukemia.
Research suggests polycythemia vera turns into another blood cancer in less than 20% of cases.
It usually happens during the later stages of the disease.
Polycythemia vera treatments help reduce your risk of symptoms and complications.
Most people don't need chemo for polycythemia unless you're at risk for cancer.
Most often the treatment for polycythemia is through simple blood withdraws from your body.
The most common treatment for polychythemia vera is having frequent blood withdrawals, using a needle in a vein (phlebotomy). It's the same procedure used for donating blood.
This decreases your blood volume and reduces the number of excess blood cells.
Polycythemia is a condition that means an increase in the number of red blood cells in the body.
These extra red blood cells in the body cause the blood to be thicker, and this, in turn, increases the risk of other health issues, such as blood clots.
Polycythemia can have different causes, each of which has its own treatment options
Polycythemia vera occurs when a mutation in a gene causes a problem with blood cell production.
Normally, your body regulates the number of each of the three types of blood cells you have red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets.
Hypoxia from long standing (chronic) lung disease and smoking are common causes of polycythemia.
Therefore, smoking can be a significant risk factor for polycythemia.
Chronic carbon monoxide (CO) exposure can also be a risk factor for polycythemia.
There's no cure for polycythemia vera.
Treatment focuses on reducing your risk of complications. These treatments may also ease your symptoms.
The secondary polycythemia is caused by an underlying condition, most of which are well known and have multiple treatment options available.
Once the underlying cause is corrected, symptoms of secondary polycythemia usually go away.
To diagnose PV, your doctor will perform a test called a complete blood count (CBC) to see if your number of red blood cells is higher than normal.
Your doctor may also test your blood to look for amounts of a hormone called erythropoietin.
Lower-than-normal levels of this hormone can be a sign of PV.
Polycythemia, also called erythrocytosis, refers to an increase in red blood cell mass, noted on laboratory evaluation as increased hemoglobin and hematocrit levels.
Polycythemia vera is a subtype of polycythemia and is associated with the overproduction of all 3 cell lines.