Blood Screenings

Cost: $6

Requires Medical Provider order: No

This screening includes the following counts:

• White Blood Count (WBC): The number of white blood cells. High WBC can be a sign of infection. WBC is also increased in certain types of leukemia. Low white counts can be a sign of bone marrow diseases or an enlarged spleen.
• Red Blood Cells (RBC): This helps diagnose the cause of anemia. Low values suggest iron deficiency and high values suggest either deficiency of B12 or Folate, ineffective production in the bone marrow, or recent blood loss with replacement by newer (and larger) cells from the bone marrow.
• Hemoglobin (Hgb): The amount of oxygen-carrying protein contained within the red blood cells. Low Hgb or Hct suggests anemia. Anemia can be due to nutritional deficiencies, blood loss, destruction of blood cells internally, or failure to produce blood in the bone marrow. High Hgb can occur due to lung disease, living at high altitudes, or excessive bone marrow production of blood cells.
• Hematocrit (Hct): The percentage of the blood volume occupied by red blood cells.
• Platelet Count (PLT): This is the number of cells that plug up holes in your blood vessels and prevent bleeding. High values can occur with bleeding, cigarette smoking, or excess production by the bone marrow. Low values can occur from premature destruction states such as Immune Thrombocytopenia (ITP), acute blood loss, drug effects (such as heparin), infections with sepsis, entrapment of platelets in an enlarged spleen, or bone marrow failure from diseases such as myelofibrosis or leukemia. Low platelets also can occur from the clumping of the platelets in a lavender-colored tube.

Cost: $16

Requires Medical Provider order: No

A blood cell protein that contains iron. A ferritin test helps your doctor understand how much iron your body is storing.

Cost: $15

Requires Medical Provider order: No

The Free T4 test is used to assess the thyroid's function and to help diagnose diseases or disorders of the thyroid, like hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism.

Cost: $12

Requires Medical Provider order: No

Measures the amount of glucose chemically attached to your red blood cells. Since blood cells live for about 3 months, it gives your average glucose for the last 6 to 8 weeks. A high level suggests poor diabetes control.

Cost: $24

Requires Medical Provider order: No

• A 12-hour fast is required. (You may have water, black coffee, or plain tea).
• The lipid panel blood test used to assess a person's risk of developing cardiovascular disease checks your total cholesterol, triglycerides, LDL & HDL.
• The CMP provides information about the current health of your kidneys and liver as well as electrolyte and acid/base balance, important blood proteins, and level of blood glucose. Blood pressure and weight are also checked during this screening.

Learn more about how cholesterol affects your health from the CDC's Cholesterol resource.

Cost: $15

Requires Medical Provider order: No

The PSA test measures the level of the PSA (a protein produced by the cells of the prostate gland) in the blood. It is normal for men to have low levels of PSA in their blood; however, prostate cancer or benign conditions can increase PSA levels. PSA levels alone do not give doctors enough information to distinguish between benign prostate conditions and cancer. The doctor will take the result of the PSA test into account when deciding whether to check further for signs of prostate cancer.

Cost: $19

Requires Medical Provider order: No

To help evaluate thyroid gland function and to help diagnose thyroid disorders. This panel includes the following:

• Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH): This protein hormone is secreted by the pituitary gland and regulated by the thyroid gland. A high level suggests your thyroid is underactive, and a low level suggests your thyroid is overactive.
• Thyroxine (T4): This shows the total amount of T4. High levels may be due to hyperthyroidism, however, technical artifact occurs when estrogen levels are higher from pregnancy, birth control pills, or estrogen replacement therapy.
• Triiodothyronine (T3): This is usually not ordered as a screening test, but rather when thyroid disease is being evaluated.

Cost: $29

Requires Medical Provider order: No

This test evaluates 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25-D):  the best measure of how much vitamin D is stored in your body. A prolonged deficiency in vitamin D can pose health risks. Vitamin D occurs naturally in very few foods so most people cannot get sufficient vitamin D through nutrition alone. If vitamin D levels are low, vitamin supplementation may be helpful, especially when access to natural sunlight is limited.