Bone Marrow and Stem Cell Conditions
Bone marrow and stem cell conditions may prevent the body from producing enough red blood cells. Some of the stem cells in the marrow (the center of your bones) will develop into red blood cells. If these stem cells don’t function properly, if they are not enough or if they are replaced by other cells such as cancer cells, then you can have low hemoglobin count. Low hemoglobin level caused by bone marrow or stem problems include:
- Aplastic anemia: It happens when there is insufficient stem cells or complete absence of stem cells in the body. People can have aplastic anemia because of their genes or because their bone marrow is injured by medications, radiation, chemotherapy or infection. Other conditions that can affect the bone marrow are multiple myeloma or leukemia. In most cases, there is no clear cause of aplastic anemia
- Lead poisoning: Lead is toxic to the bone marrow, causing people to have smaller red blood cells. Lead poisoning can occur when adults are exposed to lead at work. It can also occur when children eat chips of lead paint.
- Thalassemia: This occurs when there is a problem with hemoglobin formation (the 4 chains are not correctly formed). The body makes really little amount of red blood cells, though the body can produce enough of them to be asymptomatic or it can be severe.
It can be passed down in your genes and it mostly affects people of Mediterranean, African, middle eastern Southeast Asian descent. This condition can range from mild to lethal. The most severe form of thalassemia is called Cooley’s anemia.