Treatment of the above disorders varies with the cause. Whenever a drug or toxin is implicated as the cause of anemia, low white blood cell or low platelet counts, the offending agent must be removed. When an infection, inflammatory disease or other disorder, such as cancer, causes anemia, the underlying disease must be treated. Often, Erythropoietin (a red cell growth factor, commercially available as Procrit, Epogen and Aranesp) may help restore red cell production. For vitamin or mineral deficiencies, the appropriate factor must be replaced and the reason for the deficiency identified. Iron deficiency is often due to bleeding; if so, the source of the bleeding must be found and remedied. Big spleens sometimes have to be removed. Other times medical treatment of the underlying problem may help. Immune disorders may be treated with immune suppressants, such as Prednisone (a corticosteroid), or other biological agents, such as immunoglobulins or Rituxan. For inherited diseases, such as sickle cell anemia and thalassemia, appropriate supportive care must be instituted; sometimes patients have to go on an iron chelation program (if they are iron overloaded as may occur after many transfusions) and sometimes a marrow transplant is performed. For hereditary spherocytosis, splenectomy may be required. Patients with aplastic anemia, depending on their age, severity and availability of a marrow donor, may be treated either with a bone marrow transplant or with immunotherapy. For certain anemia's, treatment with Erythropoietin (red blood cell growth factor) may be very beneficial; this is especially the case for patients with kidney disease or anemia related to cancer or inflammatory diseases such as arthritis. Neutrophil growth factors are also available, but they are usually not indicated as long-term treatment, except in some rare disorders.
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