Hi Pattiy6,
There is an article about blood counts on this site. It helped me better understand what is in the normal range, but like what better said, what is a good blood count for may be different than someone else so do ask your doctor, they can explain it best what they are looking for.
With CLL lymphocytes will continue to rise which in turn will raise your WBCs. Sometimes they grow more quickly. Sometimes they may level off for a time. It’s all individual how quickly CLL progresses. Stress, rest/sleep, diet, exercise probably all play a part in this along with our individual gene mutations/deletions. Some people start treatment 2 yrs from diagnosis, some 6, some never. I’ve heard people starting with chemo or chemo coupled with targeted. My doctor said immunotherapy coupled with targeted when/if treatment is required for me. The key thing to remember is that CLL is incurable, but it is manageable to the point of extending life many, many years! And new treatments always are being discovered!
The doctors watch you wbc count, hemagoblin, platelets, and neutrophils. They will also check the size of your lymph nodes, on your neck, under your arm, and in your groin. And your spleen.
My wbc count got up to 475,000 before my doctor first treated me.
Cat scans are done to check out your lymph node and spleen size.
All of this is over a couple of months. CLL moves slowly, nothing is rushed. Now take a deep breath and relax.
My husbands doctor pays more attention to the platelet count than wbc.
Great question. I appreciate all the responses.