Bone Marrow Testing
Patients and Physicians
Every patient meets with a physician. We discuss your symptoms and order bloodwork to determine as much information as accurately as possible. If bloodwork results are abnormal or inconclusive, we will determine if a bone marrow test is appropriate. If it is, our physicians will explain why we need the test, and how it works.
Bone Marrow Testing
A bone marrow test consists of three parts:
- You receive a simple local anesthetic that is very similar to what a dentist might give you.
- The bone marrow aspiration, which is the act of suctioning out the liquid bone marrow. This allows us to properly examine the contents of your bone marrow and see if the cells that should be there are there and growing normally. It also helps us identify if there is any growth of cells that don’t belong there.
- The bone marrow biopsy. This is obtaining a little sliver of bone. This gives us an idea of the architecture of your bone marrow.
The entire procedure does not take more than 15 to 20 minutes – most of which is preparatory. The procedure itself (the 3 steps mentioned) only takes a few minutes.
Test Results
Test results typically take 3-5 days to obtain and review. We have a laboratory in house.
Once the tests are done, we send the samples off and review them. This typically takes 1-2 weeks for the results to get back to our physicians to intepret. We will schedule an appointment to go over the results.
Test Review and Consultation
Once we receive and review the results, we will sit down with you to review the results in a confidential and comfortable setting. Next steps, precautions you should take, or any kind of concerns will be answered. We have additional informational resources to provide you in the event where your symptoms require treatment.