Not sure what my bone marrow biopsy means..
 

Hi,
I just got the results of my bone marrow biopsy and was wondering if anyone could help me understand what it means since my Dr didn't bother to do so.
So, the first part says..1. Mildly hypocellular marrow (40%) with maturing trilineage hematopoiesis and decreased iron deposits.
2. There is a mixed population of maturing myeloid cells, B Cells and T Cells.
3. A small population of dimCD45(+) cells that are CD19(+) CD10(+), compatible with hematogones, is present (2.3%)

I think that I can provide some information on the first two items, but the last one is well above my pay grade and would only be speculation based on impoverished internet research.

First of all, I am sorry that you had to experience a bone marrow biopsy. Although I have had over 20 of them, I know that they are not pleasant and can be a little nerve wracking, especially while awaiting results on what it all means.

The first item listed was marrow cellularity of 40%, which you stated was mildly hypo-cellular. Basically, this is a reading of how dense your bone marrow is. Normal cellularity is a range, but the rule of thumb is that you take 100 and subtract your age for the target percentage. For example, if you are 40 years old, you would take 100 - 40, and expect about 60% cellularity. Anything above might be HYPER-cellular and anything below might be HYPO-cellular. Really low cellularity leads to reduced blood cell production and can result in aplastic anemia of varying grades.

The decreased iron stores means that you may have some degree of iron deficiency, but there isn't a reason directly associated with it from this observation.

The second item was mixed population of b and t cells. These are types of white blood cells and is merely an observation that you have both, which is normal. Since there wasn't really a qualifier, it did not appear that you had an abnormal imbalance between the two, and the fact that they were maturing indicates that their development appears normal. (again, only based on the statement provided).

The third observation is where this gets tricky, and it is really hard to say as my experience is with MDS-type marrow results. A quick search suggests that hematogones are early stage B cells that look like lymphoblasts and they represent 2.3% of the (presumably) b cell population. I have no idea what this means from a diagnostic perspective and strongly recommend asking your doctor directly what he or she is thinking of as possibilities and what steps, if any, are required going forward.

Thanks so much for replying and for the info you provided. It is greatly appreciated!! I have a follow up appointment scheduled for Monday, so hopefully answers will be given.