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  #16   ^
Old Mon, May-25-15, 06:48
Benay's Avatar
Benay Benay is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 876
 
Plan: Protein Power/Atkins
Stats: 250/167/175 Female 5 feet 6 inches
BF:
Progress: 111%
Location: Prescott, Arizona, USA
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Thanks for this, Janet. I have scoured both LabCorp and Direct labs. Found the insulin test on DirectLab ($29 today) and found a lab facility within 10 miles of where I live that will draw blood for either/both labs. What a wonderful way to control/monitor your own health status without having to explain to your GP why you want the test and then arguing about it.

Although I have routine blood work with an annual physical, I am not sure my physician reads them. For example, at my pre-op appointment, the examining physician told me my potassium levels were low due to my blood pressure medications (which I have been taking for years). I have been taking OTC Potassium of 99 mg but he told me I should be taking 600 mg to counteract the electrolyte loss! My own physician has never noticed!
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  #17   ^
Old Mon, May-25-15, 07:13
WereBear's Avatar
WereBear WereBear is online now
Senior Member
Posts: 14,608
 
Plan: EpiPaleo/Primal/LowOx
Stats: 220/125/150 Female 67
BF:
Progress: 136%
Location: USA
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Doctors rely on what the lab tells them about the results. One round of expensive lab tests (fortunately mostly covered by insurance) was a ridiculous hodge-podge that revealed that some of the most important were done all wrong! And then he had the nerve to tell me there was nothing wrong with me after he did the tests incorrectly!
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  #18   ^
Old Mon, May-25-15, 07:34
JEY100's Avatar
JEY100 JEY100 is online now
Posts: 13,371
 
Plan: P:E/DDF
Stats: 225/150/169 Female 5' 9"
BF:45%/28%/25%
Progress: 134%
Location: NC
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Benay
Thanks for this, Janet. I have scoured both LabCorp and Direct labs. Found the insulin test on DirectLab ($29 today) and found a lab facility within 10 miles of where I live that will draw blood for either/both labs.

You are welcome. Add the USA code today for 20% off that price. Wanted to add that the requistion ("doctor's order") arrived three hours after my order was placed...this morning on Memorial Day. In recent comments on the Fung thread, learned some BP medicines can cause BG to go up. Teaser posted the link.
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  #19   ^
Old Mon, May-25-15, 15:00
Benay's Avatar
Benay Benay is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 876
 
Plan: Protein Power/Atkins
Stats: 250/167/175 Female 5 feet 6 inches
BF:
Progress: 111%
Location: Prescott, Arizona, USA
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So far, BG remains stable. Maybe mine doesn't have that effect. Keeping my cramped (lack of Potassium) fingers crossed.
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  #20   ^
Old Mon, May-25-15, 15:04
Lesliean Lesliean is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 175
 
Plan: Rosedale
Stats: 129/125/122 Female 5.5
BF:
Progress:
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Quote:
Originally Posted by aj_cohn
Even when you can order your own tests, the issue becomes how to get appropriate treatment that the results warrant. As Neanderpam and others can attest, getting proper care for Hashimoto's/Graves is nearly impossible from MSM doc.s, because (a) they haven't been trained to accept the results of truly useful tests and (b) the entire profession is under the thumb of big pharma.


It is my understanding from Mary Sholom of about.thyroid and Stopthethyroidmadness that the AACE reversed it's 2002 recommendation to lower the 5.5 TSH requirement for original diagnosis to 3.1 because it would entail treating 29% of women for subclinical hypothyroidism. Add to that, that the TSH test changes up to 2 points in a 24 hour period and that TSH lowers significantly when active t3 is present making the TSH a worthless test.

I have a low TSH with normal free T3 and free T4 and my daughter is now battling a new doctor who says to cut her T4 in half because her TSH is low while her free T3 and free T4 are both in the low range. Why is it so hard to treat to the active hormone available or converted in the blood?

Doctors have no understanding of how to test or treat hypothyroidism. Treat to available free t3 and free t4? Look at reverse t3 for cellular interference? Disregard TSH? Use the normal treatment cutoff of 2 for initial diagnosis to avoid heart problems down the road? It's a travesty.

I'm afraid of losing good thyroid care and my medicines. Doctors seem overly concerned with overtreatment rather than the same problems that occur and are much more common with undertreatment.
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  #21   ^
Old Wed, Oct-28-15, 11:26
JEY100's Avatar
JEY100 JEY100 is online now
Posts: 13,371
 
Plan: P:E/DDF
Stats: 225/150/169 Female 5' 9"
BF:45%/28%/25%
Progress: 134%
Location: NC
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Finally received an email with news how LabCorp entering this market impacts Direct Labs. The tie with LabCorp is ended and the blood draws will now be done by Quest Labs. Shouldn't impact me much, we are "medical city" with labs everywhere, but others may have more or less choice in lab locations.

The positive spin reads:

"In an effort to provide the best lab experience possible, DirectLabs® is pleased to announce Quest Diagnostics® as our new service provider as of Monday November 2, 2015.


Quest has over 2,200 patient service centers nationwide, more than any other lab service provider. More locations means more convenience for you! We are also excited to announce that we can now offer testing in Hawaii and Massachusetts!

We are working very hard at making this transition as easy as possible for our customers. The ordering process will remain the same, as will receiving your results. All previously purchased requisitions may still be used at our old lab service provider, at your convenience. However, testing for all new orders will be performed at Quest Diagnostics only."

And 15% off next order to sweeten the deal.
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  #22   ^
Old Wed, Oct-28-15, 11:34
Merpig's Avatar
Merpig Merpig is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 7,582
 
Plan: EF/Fung IDM/keto
Stats: 375/225.4/175 Female 66.5 inches
BF:
Progress: 75%
Location: NE Florida
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JEY100
Finally received an email with news how LabCorp entering this market impacts Direct Labs. The tie with LabCorp is ended and the blood draws will now be done by Quest Labs.
Sounds good to me! Neither is impossible but LabCorp is about 10 miles away over busy roads I hate to drive on, and Quest barely over a mile away without having to go on any main roads at all. I always wished one of these direct places would use Quest.
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  #23   ^
Old Sat, Oct-31-15, 17:59
Zei Zei is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 1,596
 
Plan: Carb reduction in general
Stats: 230/185/180 Female 5 ft 9 in
BF:
Progress: 90%
Location: Texas
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After reading some of these comments I decided to go ahead and get a lab test done I've been considering. After checking what's in my area I found "Request A Test" which also does the blood draw at Labcorp (which is nearby) just like Direct Labs offered but was cheaper for the test I wanted. Prepaid, no appointment needed, was very quick and convenient.
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  #24   ^
Old Sat, Oct-31-15, 23:36
Meme#1's Avatar
Meme#1 Meme#1 is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 12,456
 
Plan: Atkins DANDR
Stats: 210/194/160 Female 5'4"
BF:
Progress: 32%
Location: Texas
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Bookmarking this interesting thread!
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  #25   ^
Old Sun, Nov-01-15, 03:45
JEY100's Avatar
JEY100 JEY100 is online now
Posts: 13,371
 
Plan: P:E/DDF
Stats: 225/150/169 Female 5' 9"
BF:45%/28%/25%
Progress: 134%
Location: NC
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Still outstanding questions...mainly pricing. I checked LabCop.com and nothing there yet about ordering tests yourself...unless they have a separate company for that? Or their on-line service isn't running yet, while DL is ready to switch labs tomorrow.
The email also read that DL's most popular package, the $99 wellness one, will remain at that price, yet other test pricing may change. Insulin appears to still be $29 at DL, so will be interesting to see what Labcorp and others price out.

Zei...glad you found one of these near you, though it would seem to be LabCorp's plan to stop servicing any of these "direct to consumer" companies. But they may stumble like Quest did.

Last edited by JEY100 : Sun, Nov-01-15 at 03:51.
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  #26   ^
Old Thu, Nov-19-15, 10:39
khrussva's Avatar
khrussva khrussva is offline
Say NO to Diabetes!
Posts: 8,671
 
Plan: My own - < 30 net carbs
Stats: 440/228/210 Male 5' 11"
BF:Energy Unleashed
Progress: 92%
Location: Central Virginia - USA
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I was looking to have an NMR done in conjunction with my next standard cholesterol test with my PCP in December and wouldn't you know it... it appears that Directlabs.com no longer offers that test. I checked just a few months ago (before the switch to Quest labs) and they still had it available.

I did a search and found this outfit offering the test...

Requestatest.com

Here is the link to their NMR test, with pricing...

NMR LipidProfile Test

I looked to see where the closest lab was in my area and guess what? It is at a nearby Labcorps location -- the very same location that serviced Directlabs.com 2 months ago. I'm wondering if this "RequestAtest.com" is the new outlet for Labcorps 'direct to consumer' testing. Or perhaps they are just another provider that I had not heard of before. The About Us tab says that they have been around since 2001. Does anybody know anything about them?

BTW: The NMR price is better than what I saw 2 months ago with Directlabs -- about $30 cheaper.
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  #27   ^
Old Thu, Nov-19-15, 13:14
JEY100's Avatar
JEY100 JEY100 is online now
Posts: 13,371
 
Plan: P:E/DDF
Stats: 225/150/169 Female 5' 9"
BF:45%/28%/25%
Progress: 134%
Location: NC
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Ken,
There are so many of these DTC labs. I don't now how we can check on them other than looking for a history and reviews. Someone in our local support group recommended Health Tests Direct...she has been happy with them, in business since 2001, and they were cheaper than DL on some test I checked. They still use both Quest and LabCorp, and give the patient the option. NMR did not come up searching Quest, but did when Switched to LabCorp:
https://www.health-tests-direct.com/ordering-page
Good luck!
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  #28   ^
Old Fri, Nov-20-15, 19:49
Zei Zei is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 1,596
 
Plan: Carb reduction in general
Stats: 230/185/180 Female 5 ft 9 in
BF:
Progress: 90%
Location: Texas
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by khrussva
I was looking to have an NMR done in conjunction with my next standard cholesterol test with my PCP in December and wouldn't you know it... it appears that Directlabs.com no longer offers that test. I checked just a few months ago (before the switch to Quest labs) and they still had it available.

I did a search and found this outfit offering the test...

Requestatest.com

Here is the link to their NMR test, with pricing...

NMR LipidProfile Test

I looked to see where the closest lab was in my area and guess what? It is at a nearby Labcorps location -- the very same location that serviced Directlabs.com 2 months ago. I'm wondering if this "RequestAtest.com" is the new outlet for Labcorps 'direct to consumer' testing. Or perhaps they are just another provider that I had not heard of before. The About Us tab says that they have been around since 2001. Does anybody know anything about them?

BTW: The NMR price is better than what I saw 2 months ago with Directlabs -- about $30 cheaper.

I used Request A Test for my recent NMR profile, went to Labcorp for the draw. Cheaper than other labs, very quick response, no problems or complaints, definitely recommend.
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  #29   ^
Old Fri, Nov-20-15, 19:57
khrussva's Avatar
khrussva khrussva is offline
Say NO to Diabetes!
Posts: 8,671
 
Plan: My own - < 30 net carbs
Stats: 440/228/210 Male 5' 11"
BF:Energy Unleashed
Progress: 92%
Location: Central Virginia - USA
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by Zei
I used Request A Test for my recent NMR profile, went to Labcorp for the draw. Cheaper than other labs, very quick response, no problems or complaints, definitely recommend.

Thanks. I'll go for it then. I'm going to have the lab done the same day and my lab for the regular lipid panel at my doctor's office. I'm curious to see how close the 'calculated' LDL turns out to be compared to the measured LDL in the NMR test. Thanks again for the info.

Last edited by khrussva : Sat, Nov-21-15 at 09:06.
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  #30   ^
Old Sat, Nov-21-15, 08:23
WereBear's Avatar
WereBear WereBear is online now
Senior Member
Posts: 14,608
 
Plan: EpiPaleo/Primal/LowOx
Stats: 220/125/150 Female 67
BF:
Progress: 136%
Location: USA
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This is going to blow up the way medicine is done. I think for the better. Based on my own experience.

I saw an endocrine specialist who was an absolute a$$; he ran an important test under the wrong protocol, interpreted it wrong, and overcharged me for it.

The only valuable part is that it did lead me to effective help, but that was entirely my own doing! Ultimately, he was expensive and useless. I did better with my own brain and the Internet.
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