Metabolism
The process by which your body converts what you eat and drink into energy
Hematopoiesis
The production of blood cells and platelets, which occurs in the bone marrow
Erythropoeisis
The production of red blood cells
-emia
Suffix for blood
Hema- or hemo-
Prefix for blood
Agglutination
The clumping of particles
Coagulation
Clotting, the process through which blood changes from a liquid and becomes thicker, like a gel
Hematocrit
The volume percentage of red blood cells in blood
Hemoglobin
A protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen
Bilirubin
A yellowish pigment that is made during the normal breakdown of red blood cells
Antigen
Attached to various components in the red blood cell membrane, any substance to which the immune system can respond
Antibodies
Proteins that your immune system makes to attack germs and other foreign substances in your body
Thrombus
A blood clot that forms in a vein
Embolus
Anything that moves through the blood vessels until it reaches a vessel that is too small to let it pass
Leukopenia
A decrease in disease-fighting cells (leukocytes) in your blood
Leukocytosis
An elevated white blood cell (WBC) count
Leukemia
A cancer of blood-forming tissues, hindering the body's ability to fight infection
Anemia
A condition in which you lack enough healthy red blood cells to carry adequate oxygen to your body's tissues
Pernicious anemia
A decrease in red blood cells when the body can't absorb enough vitamin B-12
Polycythemia
Known as erythrocytosis, means having a high concentration of red blood cells in your blood
Hemophilia/Hemophiliac
A disorder in which blood doesn't clot normally
Blood serum
The clear liquid part of the blood that remains after blood cells and clotting proteins have been removed
Erythrocyte
Red blood cells
Leukocyte
White blood cells
Thrombocyte
Platelet