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Blood Draw Kit

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Hello all, I have not been on this site in awhile, I hope you are all doing well!  

I have a question and hope someone has the experience to share.

I was recently at my oncologist at Sloan.  They just moved into a new building and things were somewhat hectic with the new place and some new routines. My doc somehow forgot to order the molecular blood testing which I have done every three months.  I discovered this when I called for the results and was told it was never ordered. So, living 300 miles away, I drove down there just for a CBC!  I was so annoyed!

However, I was told by one of the nurses I know there, that they would send some sort of test kit which I could take to my local primary doctor who could do the blood draw and then send it back in the kit and Sloan would process it as the molecular test for my BCR-AB1 (PCR) numbers.

Has anyone had experience with this? Is it as accurate as when they draw the blood and have the test done pretty quickly?

I appreciate your help!

Bendicco

Hi Bendicco,

If you were already there at the clinic, why did they not take another sample for PCR at the same time? I assume this is what they would normally do every 3 months. Of course your local doctor could take a blood sample and send it back to Sloan, but they would need to get it sent within a few hours of it being drawn as the RNA in the sample starts to degrade pretty much as soon as it is taken so time is of the essence. 

Sandy

Thanks for your response Sandy. Yes that is what they always do but this time the doc forgot to order it. I will be very certain from now on to ensure it will be done. Apparently tho the kit contains some type of chemical to make certain the blood remains viable. Not sure what to do, they said it’s done all the time. 260 miles each way when I was just there. So very upset.

Good morning/afternoon?

So still trying to decide about the test kit that would be sent to me to have my regular doc draw the blood and then send back to Sloan for testing.  There must be some sort of preservative or something that keeps the blood viable for an accurate test for PCR etc. Anyone know?

Thanks.

Various anticoagulants and preservatives are used and can be identified by the colour of the collection tube. 

  • ​Purple: EDTA. Commonly used for FBC tests.
  • Blue: sodium citrate. Used for tests that need reversible anti-clotting. 
  • Yellow: silica and a serum separating gel. Used for loads of tests, iron, lipids, thyroid function amongst many more.

You can read about others here: https://geekymedics.com/blood-bottles-guide/

Our PCR tests typically use blood stored with EDTA as an additive. 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethylenediaminetetraacetic_acid

 

 

Thanks David. Have you personal experience with the kit?

Once, yes. We needed to test my sister for HLA matching with me, but she lives abroad so they gave us a blood kit to give to someone there. We actually just did it ourselves because she and my step-dad are medics ... but you don’t really want a doctor taking the blood unless you want a bit of a mess, a nurse is going to be better every time! Still, we did it. Messily!

Really the most important part of it isn’t the blood draw - that’s a simple one. If you have confidence that the blood will be stored well and sent quickly then it’s absolutely fine.

Steve O’Brien (Newcastle Hospital, CML specialist) told me about how they can do quite decent tests from dried blood when he worked in poorer parts of Africa. Not going to give you a 1 in 100,000 sensitivity but it just goes to show how good the testing is.

For my own peace of mind, I would find out how quickly the blood gets to the lab. 

David

Thanks David, that’s very helpful. Yes I would have the nurse do it! I’m assuming that Sloan will send it to me and include a return label , FedEx overnite I guess. I hope that the test with the kit is as accurate as when it is done in the lab soon after it is drawn. Can’t believe the doc hadn’t ordered it. He has a lot of explaining to do!!