Confused.. Can anyone help?

[katkatdd]

I will start with saying I have had multiple symptoms and different diagnoses thru out the years. I do have Graves, Fibromyalgia, Diabetes and now looking into vasculitis as I have multiple lung nodules that are now growing. I have seen many drs but my new Rhuematologist seems to think he is onto something. He has sent me for TONS of lab work, and referred to pulmonology to get another bronchoscopy done and biopsy on nodules. Not sure when that will actually happen though. Waiting for insurance. What I am confused about though is my new labs and what it all means.. I was under the impression that you should not have ANY ANCA in your blood at all, and if you do then they measure how much and it means something is going on. Is that correct?? Here are some lab values that I would love to get some opinions on if possible. I realize I have to consult with my dr for definite answer, but my next appt with him isn't until December....



Antimyeloperoxidase (MPO) Abs (Labcorp)
<9.0 U/mL
0.0 - 9.0 U/mL




Antiproteinase 3 (PR-3) Abs (Labcorp)
<3.5 U/mL
0.0 - 3.5 U/mL




Atypical pANCA (Labcorp)
<1:20 titer
Neg:<1:20 titer




Cytoplasmic (C-ANCA) (Labcorp)
<1:20 titer
Neg:<1:20 titer


Perinuclear (P-ANCA) (Labcorp)
<1:20 titer
Neg:<1:20 titer

[katkatdd]

The first numbers are what my values were or are!

[annekat]

Welcome, Katkatdd. I see this has gone unanswered all day. I am not the greatest one to talk about the chemistry of lab results. I'm not sure that we should never have any ANCA at all in our blood if we are healthy... maybe someone can answer that. What I do know is that the most common with WG/GPA is C-ANCA, though some have P-ANCA, and that it is not always a reliable indicator of disease activity, in other words, a person can have very low or absent ANCA reading and still have WG/GPA. Whether the reverse is true, that any ANCA at all does not always mean illness, I don't know. I had a very low reading at diagnosis but was quite sick. Others have had a high reading and I would expect them to be sick. To tell you the truth, I don't know what my reading was, I'm not tested for it currently, and I don't know how typical your numbers are. I hope someone will notice this and answer, who knows more than I do. I just thought someone should acknowledge your post.

[renidrag]

I was diagnosed in 2009 and have never had a positive ANCA. I have been in remission since mid 2010 and remain there. ANCA is not the be all end all to diagnosing WG, I think inflammation markers such as PR3 and CRP along with Creatinine are very important.
Dale

[Alysia]

If I understand right, your results are negative. But it doesnt negate having vasculitis.