Question

Case Scenario: A cancer patient, in hospice, has been diagnosed with leukopenia and thrombocytopenia. His hemoglobin is low, and symptoms include fatigue, disorientation, and lack of family interaction. As the hospice nurse assesses the patient, she looks at recent labs and daily intake. She has asked the family to give in detail this patient’s daily activities, his pain, and sleep habits.

1. Question: Compare a normal hemoglobin to what you might see in this patient. List the values of normal and abnormal hemoglobin.

Answer 1

Hemoglobin is seen in the red blood cells which is an iron containing protein molecule. It carries oxygen in the circulating blood to different tissues. The normal hemoglobin level in men ranges from 13.5 to 17.5 gm / dl and in women is 12.0 to 15.5 gm / dl. Chronic diseases like cancer can cause anemia in some patients. Anemia is the deficiency of hemoglobin in blood or lack or enough hemoglobin for oxygen transportation.The patient has cancer with leukopenia and thrombocytopenia and low hemoglobin level or anemia which might be due to disease progression.

List the values of normal and abnormal hemoglobin.

Normal hemoglobin level

Men - 13.5 to 17.5 gm / dl

Women - 12.0 to 15.5 gm / dl

Abnormal hemoglobin level	Type of anemia
10 - 13.5 gm / dl 10 - 12 gm / dl	Mild anemia
8 - 10 gm / dl	Moderate anemia
less than 8 gm / dl	Severe anemia