Why do so many people with COPD end up with anemia? Is it the medication, oxygen deprivation, or do we not know? I will sum up the latest thinking on the topic. According to Anemia and COPD: Why Do Patients With COPD Develop Anemia? (newlifeoutlook.com), “Anemia is especially serious if you have COPD because you may not be able to inhale adequate amounts of oxygen and exhale excess carbon dioxide well because of your illness. You may be anemic without knowing it.”
Why do more people with COPD have anemia than the general population? In other words what is the relationship between COPD an anemia? Researchers believe COPD precipitates the development of anemia by several means. Chronic inflammation and an altered immune response appear to be involved. This is an interesting theory because I had a diagnosis of anemia prior to my diagnosis of COPD. I do not rule out the possibility that I had COPD prior to the anemia diagnosis. In fact, I think that in all likelihood I did have COPD at that time. I have always been physically active, and exercise has always been a part of my routine, so I believe that ailments are sometimes not diagnosed because I appear healthy.
It is known that people with COPD suffer to some degree with inflammation. “Normally, red blood cells live for about four months. Among people with COPD, chronic inflammation makes the cells die faster than in healthy individuals. The bone marrow speeds up the production of red blood cells when a lack is sensed by the body, but this ability is impaired among individuals who have COPD. The body cannot keep up with the ongoing demand for rapidly produced red blood cells, so anemia ensues.” (Anemia and COPD: Why Do Patients With COPD Develop Anemia? (newlifeoutlook.com) Prior to my diagnosis of anemia my doctor noted that the lab had reported that my red blood cells were misshapen and enlarged. Her theory was that I was not producing enough red cells, so they had increased their surface area to compensate and that we needed to keep an eye on this phenomenon in the future.
- PubMed declares that “Certain medications for heart disease, including ACE inhibitors and oxygen therapy” may be involved in the development of anemia.
- There is also a little-known connection between many chronic illnesses and anemia. How anemia develops in patients with COPD is not quite clear. It may be what is called an “anemia of chronic disease.” This is common in diseases like cancer and those that involve an abnormal immune response. It is not the same as iron-deficiency anemia. Instead, scientists believe inflammation-causing proteins, called cytokines, shorten the normal lifespan of red blood cells, and make it harder for the bone marrow to make more of them.
As most articles surmise, anemia and COPD are a double whammy and make it twice as hard to breathe. Anemia can make you short of breath, and of course so does COPD in many cases. It is interesting to think that the one treatment proven to extend the life of a COPD patient may also be the cause of anemia in COPD patients. That treatment is supplemental oxygen.
Again, I must stress that those of us with COPD need a healthcare team who is well informed and work together with our best interest in mind.