# New, and hoping for help with labs!



## skydanser (Nov 7, 2012)

(**I EDITED THIS POSTING TO INCLUDE THE STANDARD RANGES.**)

Hello! I've been desperately trying to get a diagnosis, so I was thrilled to come across this board. People here really seem to know what's going on. What a lovely support community! So, I'm hoping you can help me. Here's my story:

I'm a recent ovarian cancer survivor, and I'm doing well as far as that is concerned. But, otherwise, I'm experiencing a lot of fairly health symptoms that are severe enough to cause me problems with work and daily life:
1.	Extreme fatigue
2.	Brain fog
3.	Joint pain
4.	Hair loss
5.	Swollen ankles
6.	Leg cramps
7.	Restless legs at night
8.	Weigh gain
9.	Puffy face
10.	Cold intolerance

Both my grandmothers and my mother were diagnosed as hypothyroid, and I've always had a low body temperature (average of 97.8). So, when I took my concerns to my GP, she ran some labs to test my thyroid function:
TSH, 3rd generation: 1.82 (standard range: .40-4.00)
T3: 93 (standard range: 76-181)
Free T3: 2.3 (standard range: 2.6-5.2)
Free T4: 0.7 (standard range: 0.7-1.5)

My liver enzymes are also elevated (for at least the past year), as is my cholesterol (although it's been fine in the past and I don't eat a lot of animal products):
ALT (SGPT): 83 (standard range: 0-52)
AST (SGOT): 49 (standard range: 0-39)
Cholestrol: 201 (standard range: 0-200)
Triglycerides: 71 (standard range: 50-150)
HDL: 61 (standard range: >=40-)
LDL: 126 (standard range: 0-100)
Non-HDL: 140 (standard range: 0-130)

And my ferritin is low at 6.0 (standard range: 11.0-307)

My GP said I was not hypopthyroid, but suggested I start taking synthroid "just to see what happens." That wasn't really good enough for me, so I went to an endocrinologist who said it sounded as if I were hypothyroid, but that clinically, I was not. So, he ran some more tests to try to discover what exactly is going on. I'm still waiting for the lab results to arrive via mail, but he called to tell me that everything checked out fine. But, I know my body, and I know something is wrong. I just don't know if it's with my thyroid or if I should be looking somewhere else!

Does anyone have any ideas? I've got plenty more labs on hand, and more results on the way, so let me know what else you need to see!

Thanks so very much in advance for any insight you may be able to share!


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## jenny v (May 6, 2012)

Congrats on beating cancer, that's awesome!

Could you post the ranges for your lab results? It's kind of hard to tell what's what without the ranges since every lab uses different ones.


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## Andros (Aug 26, 2009)

skydanser said:


> Hello! I've been desperately trying to get a diagnosis, so I was thrilled to come across this board. People here really seem to know what's going on. What a lovely support community! So, I'm hoping you can help me. Here's my story:
> 
> I'm a recent ovarian cancer survivor, and I'm doing well as far as that is concerned. But, otherwise, I'm experiencing a lot of fairly health symptoms that are severe enough to cause me problems with work and daily life:
> 1.	Extreme fatigue
> ...


Oh my goodness; bless your heart! So glad to hear you are a survivor of the ovarian cancer. Those were some dark days to be sure.

It does sound like you have thyroid problems. Unfortunately, different labs use different ranges so if you have the time, could you add in the ranges next to the results?

Some of your symptoms could be attributable to the low ferritin but after what you have been through w/ the ovarian cancer, your thyroid may have been affected.

For example, did you have chemo and/or radiation or both?


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## skydanser (Nov 7, 2012)

Thanks. It was a mighty feat indeed.  I've edited the original post to include the standard ranges of my labs. Silly me, I thought they would be standardized. Haha!


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## skydanser (Nov 7, 2012)

I did not receive chemo or radiation. Non-standard, I know, but I was at the beginning stages, and I'm hoping to preserve my fertility. Providentially, I'm working with one of the top OVCA (ovarian cancer) researchers in the U.S., and he is willing to try integrative therapies with me.


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## Andros (Aug 26, 2009)

skydanser said:


> (**I EDITED THIS POSTING TO INCLUDE THE STANDARD RANGES.**)
> 
> Hello! I've been desperately trying to get a diagnosis, so I was thrilled to come across this board. People here really seem to know what's going on. What a lovely support community! So, I'm hoping you can help me. Here's my story:
> 
> ...


You are hypo. Thank you for the ranges. You have little FT4 which is supposed to convert to FT3 which is your active hormone. FT3 is in the basement and I suspect you feel like a slug. How do you even get up in the morning? My goodness.

Ulta-sound would be a good idea also.


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## skydanser (Nov 7, 2012)

I feel like a TOTAL slug! All I feel like doing is sleeping and eating. In fact, I've gained 10 pounds in the last month, so now I feel even ickier because of that. Blaugh! And this has not been good for my studies...(I'm in my fourth year of PhD studies in rhetoric/writing/community engagement at Michigan State University). In fact, because of all my recent health issues this past year (cancer, major surgery, and now this silliness!), I'm a year behind in my program, and my school has chosen not to extend my funding to next year. It totally sucks, and I WANT MY LIFE BACK! So, I'm doing tons of medical research now because my doctors aren't helping much.

Thanks for your opinion and advice. I so appreciate it, and I can't wait to hear what others on here have to say.


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## Andros (Aug 26, 2009)

skydanser said:


> I feel like a TOTAL slug! All I feel like doing is sleeping and eating. In fact, I've gained 10 pounds in the last month, so now I feel even ickier because of that. Blaugh! And this has not been good for my studies...(I'm in my fourth year of PhD studies in rhetoric/writing/community engagement at Michigan State University). In fact, because of all my recent health issues this past year (cancer, major surgery, and now this silliness!), I'm a year behind in my program, and my school has chosen not to extend my funding to next year. It totally sucks, and I WANT MY LIFE BACK! So, I'm doing tons of medical research now because my doctors aren't helping much.
> 
> Thanks for your opinion and advice. I so appreciate it, and I can't wait to hear what others on here have to say.


Tch; that is bad that it has impacted your fourth year. I am so sorry for this.

You may find this site helpful in your quest for medical intervention.

http://www.thyroidmanager.org/

And "we" appreciate your being here. I hope the others chime in.


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## skydanser (Nov 7, 2012)

Thanks so much, Andros. I've felt really isolated lately, and frustrated, too. I'm spending so much time doing medical research trying to diagnose myself because doctors have not been helpful. It's been exhausting. Finding the forum was the first thing this week that gave me some hope! I'm part of an online ovca support network, and most of the useful information I've found about ovca has come from there, so I've learned to really appreciate information from survivors/thrivers/and others dealing with medical challenges. It seems "we" are the ones who are willing to dig in and research and look for answers that aren't easily found. Probably because we are more invested because we are the most affected.

Question: Can you tell me why I might need an ultrasound? And how can I suggest it to my GP in a way that she might actually support the request? I'm supposed to go for an ultrasound of my liver in January or December because of the mysteriously elevated liver enzymes. She thinks it could be non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. But, because I eat SUPER healthy, I'm thinking it could be hormone influenced...


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## Andros (Aug 26, 2009)

skydanser said:


> Thanks so much, Andros. I've felt really isolated lately, and frustrated, too. I'm spending so much time doing medical research trying to diagnose myself because doctors have not been helpful. It's been exhausting. Finding the forum was the first thing this week that gave me some hope! I'm part of an online ovca support network, and most of the useful information I've found about ovca has come from there, so I've learned to really appreciate information from survivors/thrivers/and others dealing with medical challenges. It seems "we" are the ones who are willing to dig in and research and look for answers that aren't easily found. Probably because we are more invested because we are the most affected.
> 
> Question: Can you tell me why I might need an ultrasound? And how can I suggest it to my GP in a way that she might actually support the request? I'm supposed to go for an ultrasound of my liver in January or December because of the mysteriously elevated liver enzymes. She thinks it could be non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. But, because I eat SUPER healthy, I'm thinking it could be hormone influenced...


Yes; to make sure you don't have cancer of the thyroid. Believe it or not, this could be something tied in to the ovarian cancer. Do you have any swollen lymph glands in the clavicle area?

If your cholesterol (high) is off because of thyroid disease, this could present in the liver.


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## skydanser (Nov 7, 2012)

Actually, I just posted something related to this in the Hashimoto's forum! A well-respected naturopath who specializes in working with ovca survivors claims that 100% of her patients also have Hashimoto's! That's why I started looking in this direction (researching, getting tested, etc.).

Question: I don't know if I have any swollen glands in the clavical area. How can I check for myself? And if I don't, should I still try to get an ultrasound?


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## jenny v (May 6, 2012)

I agree with Andros, because you have issues with your thyroid labs and have had cancer, it would be wise to insist on an ultrasound. If nothing else, it will rule out any nodules and give you a baseline to check against over the years.

I have Hashi's and I had a baseline ultrasound earlier this year and now have them every 6 months to watch a few small nodules to make sure they don't grow.


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## joplin1975 (Jul 21, 2011)

Get an ultrasound, as Jenny said, as a baseline.

There's a connection btwn thyroid disease and auto-immune hepatitis/non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.


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## Andros (Aug 26, 2009)

skydanser said:


> I did not receive chemo or radiation. Non-standard, I know, but I was at the beginning stages, and I'm hoping to preserve my fertility. Providentially, I'm working with one of the top OVCA (ovarian cancer) researchers in the U.S., and he is willing to try integrative therapies with me.


Thank you; I am glad!


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## Andros (Aug 26, 2009)

skydanser said:


> Actually, I just posted something related to this in the Hashimoto's forum! A well-respected naturopath who specializes in working with ovca survivors claims that 100% of her patients also have Hashimoto's! That's why I started looking in this direction (researching, getting tested, etc.).
> 
> Question: I don't know if I have any swollen glands in the clavical area. How can I check for myself? And if I don't, should I still try to get an ultrasound?


Oh, yes; I would say the ultra-sound is very important.

This is a good site.
http://www.thelymphnodes.com/supraclavicular-lymph-nodes.php


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## skydanser (Nov 7, 2012)

@Jenny and Joplin: Thanks for your responses. And pushing for an ultrasound sounds like a good idea, so I'll bring it up with my GP when I see her in December!


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