Patient's question:
Dad is over 50 now. Just now at the hospital, the doctor said: the white blood cell count is low, it's 4.5. Now they need to do a male surgery, but because the white blood cell count is low, they can't proceed with it. They need to wait for a re-examination.Doctor's answer:
A simple decrease in white blood cells does not indicate leukemia. A reduced white blood cell count can be seen in typhoid fever, paratyphoid fever, malaria, aplastic anemia, acute granulocytopenia, hypersplenism, X-ray and radioactive isotope irradiation, and the use of certain anticancer drugs, among others. Leukemia is caused by malignant clonal proliferation due to genetic mutations in bone marrow and blood cell components, leading to the loss of normal cell function. It is primarily due to the abnormal proliferation of hematopoietic multipotent cells under adverse physical and chemical stimuli. To diagnose leukemia, it is still recommended to consult a doctor and undergo appropriate tests.