UNDERSTANDING BLOOD COUNTS

There are three different counts that are important to understand.
1. Hemoglobin
The hemoglobin is important because it carries oxygen to the body. a normal count is between 12 and 16. Kenna's count was 8.1 a count below 8 means a transfusion is needed.
2. Platelets
Platelets are important in the clotting of blood. A normal count is 150-450. McKenna's count was 76.
3. ANC (Absolute Neutrophil Count)
This tells how many of a specific kind of white blood cells are present. They are needed to fight infection. This count really tells how much resistance a person has to infection. A normal count is above 1500-8000 cells per microliter. Less than 500 is considered neutropenic meaning there is a high risk of infection. McKenna had a count of 40. They said it is likely to go even lower.