Abstract :
Background: An increased platelet number may be secondary to many conditions. Malignancies are known
to induce thrombocytosis in some cases. In patients with malignancies, thrombocytosis has previously
been related to disease stage, histological type, and survival. Studies have shown that thrombocytosis
is associated with a poor prognosis in various malignancies such as carcinoma ovary, cervical cancer,
endometrial cancer, breast cancer and lung cancer. The aim of this study was to analyze the etiology and
prevalence of thrombocytosis in malignancy and to assess whether platelet count can be used as a predictor
of malignancy in the cases diagnosed as cancer at the time of its first diagnosis.
Materials and Methods: This descriptive study was done on 500 patients with platelet count > 450,000/
ml with the cause being termed reactive.
Result: The most common cause of reactive thrombocytosis was Infections (28.8%), Tissue damage
(16.4%), Iron deficiency anemia (16.2%), Malignancy (9.6%) and Inflammation (9.4%). Among
malignancies, carcinoma oral cavity (20.8%) was found to be more commonly associated with
thrombocytosis; with only (4.2%) cases being less than 18 years, rest (95.8%) cases were above 18 years.
Conclusion: Thrombocytosis is associated with various neoplasms, therefore it can be used as a diagnostic
clue for malignancy in an undiagnosed patient presenting with reactive thrombocytosis and associated
symptoms of the disease thus indicating poor outcomes and mortality.
Keyword :
Malignancy, Predictor, Thrombocytosis.