High white blood cell count and high bilirubin

Q: What cancers cause elevated bilirubin?

Cancers of the pancreas, liver, and bile duct dont always show symptoms early on. But sometimes, they give off a warning sign thats easy to spot—jaundice. Marked by a yellowing of the skin or eyes, jaundice happens when a persons blood contains high levels of bilirubin—a component of bile made by the liver.

A bilirubin test measures the amount of bilirubin in your blood. It’s used to help find the cause of health conditions like jaundice, anemia, and liver disease.

Table of Contents Show

Why Do You Get This Test?
What Happens During the Test?
Who Should Get It? Who Shouldn’t?
What Do the Results Mean?
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When to see a doctor
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What infection causes high bilirubin?
Does high bilirubin indicate infection?
What cancers cause elevated bilirubin?
What might High levels of bilirubin indicate?

Bilirubin is an orange-yellow pigment that occurs normally when part of your red blood cells break down. Your liver takes the bilirubin from your blood and changes its chemical make-up so that most of it is passed through your poop as bile.

If your bilirubin levels are higher than normal, it’s a sign that either your red blood cells are breaking down at an unusual rate or that your liver isn’t breaking down waste properly and clearing the bilirubin from your blood.

Another option is that there’s a problem somewhere along the pathway that gets the bilirubin out of your liver and into your stool.

Why Do You Get This Test?

In children and adults, doctors use it to diagnose and monitor liver and bile duct diseases. These include cirrhosis, hepatitis, and gallstones.

It’ll also help determine if you have sickle cell disease or other conditions that cause hemolytic anemia. That’s a disorder where red blood cells are destroyed faster than they’re made.

High levels of bilirubin can cause a yellowing of your skin and eyes, a condition doctors call jaundice.

High bilirubin levels are common in newborns. Doctors use the age of the newborn and the bilirubin type and levels to determine if treatment is necessary.

What Happens During the Test?

A nurse or lab technician will draw blood through a small needle inserted into a vein in your arm. The blood is collected in a tube.

With newborns, blood is usually drawn by using a needle to break the skin of the heel.

Your doctor will send the blood to a lab for analysis.

Before the test, tell your doctor about how active you’ve been and what food and medicines you’ve taken. Certain medications may alter your results.

After the test, you’ll be able to continue with your normal activities right away.

Who Should Get It? Who Shouldn’t?

Your doctor may order a bilirubin test if you:

Show signs of jaundice
Have anemia, or low red blood cells
Might be having a toxic reaction to drugs
Have a history of heavy drinking
Have been exposed to hepatitis viruses
Have cirrhosis

You might also have your bilirubin tested if you have symptoms like:

Dark urine
Nausea and vomiting
Abdominal pain or abdominal swelling
Clay-colored stools
Fatigue

What Do the Results Mean?

A bilirubin test measures total bilirubin. It can also give levels of two different types of bilirubin: unconjugated and conjugated.

Unconjugated (“indirect”) bilirubin. This is the bilirubin created from red blood cell breakdown. It travels in the blood to the liver.

Conjugated (“direct”) bilirubin. This is the bilirubin once it reaches the liver and undergoes a chemical change. It moves to the intestines before being removed through your stool.

For adults over 18, normal total bilirubin can be up to 1.2 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dl) of blood. For those under 18, the normal level will be will be 1 mg/dl. Normal results for conjugated (direct) bilirubin should be less than 0.3 mg/dl.

Men tend to have slightly higher bilirubin levels than women. African-Americans tend to have lower bilirubin levels than people of other races.

High total bilirubin may be caused by:

Anemia
Cirrhosis
A reaction to a blood transfusion
Gilbert syndrome -- a common, inherited condition in which there is a deficiency of an enzyme that helps to break down bilirubin.
Viral hepatitis
A reaction to drugs
Alcoholic liver disease
Gallstones

Very strenuous exercise, such as marathon running, can increase your bilirubin levels.

Caffeine, penicillin, barbiturates, and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) called salicylates all lower your bilirubin levels.

The liver is your largest internal organ. About the size of a football, it's located mainly in the upper right portion of your abdomen — beneath the diaphragm and above your stomach. A small portion extends into the upper left quadrant.

Gilbert (zheel-BAYR) syndrome is a common, harmless liver condition in which the liver doesn't properly process bilirubin. Bilirubin is produced by the breakdown of red blood cells.

Gilbert syndrome is an inherited genetic condition. You might not know you have Gilbert syndrome until it's discovered by accident, such as when a blood test shows raised bilirubin levels.

Gilbert syndrome requires no treatment.

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Symptoms

The most frequent sign of Gilbert syndrome is an occasional yellowish tinge of the skin and the whites of the eyes as a result of slightly higher levels of bilirubin in the blood. In people with Gilbert syndrome, bilirubin levels may increase due to:

Illness, such as a cold or the flu
Fasting or eating a very low-calorie diet
Dehydration
Menstruation
Strenuous exercise
Stress

When to see a doctor

Make an appointment with your health care provider if you have jaundice, which has many possible causes.

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What infection causes high bilirubin?

Increases in serum bilirubin are typical with jaundice caused by clostridial myelonecrosis, severe bacterial sepsis, and relapsing fever (borreliosis).

Does high bilirubin indicate infection?

They can also be a complication of an infection of your bile ducts or from a blood disorder. Bilirubin builds up when your gallbladder is blocked and can't drain properly.

What cancers cause elevated bilirubin?

Cancers of the pancreas, liver, and bile duct don't always show symptoms early on. But sometimes, they give off a warning sign that's easy to spot—jaundice. Marked by a yellowing of the skin or eyes, jaundice happens when a person's blood contains high levels of bilirubin—a component of bile made by the liver.

What might High levels of bilirubin indicate?

Higher than usual levels of bilirubin may indicate different types of liver or bile duct problems. Sometimes, higher bilirubin levels may be caused by an increased rate of destruction of red blood cells.