Total Cholesterol
Also written as: TC, Cholesterol, Total
The combined cholesterol carried in all the blood's lipoprotein particles.
What it measures
The total amount of cholesterol in the blood, adding together the cholesterol carried in every particle type: HDL, LDL, VLDL, and others. It is a summary figure, not a measure of any single particle.
Why a doctor orders it
Ordered as part of a standard lipid panel to assess long term heart and blood vessel risk. It also serves as the starting point for calculated values on the same report, such as non-HDL cholesterol.
What is generally associated with a higher result
Broadly associated, at a population level, with a greater long term likelihood of cholesterol buildup in arteries. Also linked with genetics, an underactive thyroid, pregnancy, kidney and liver conditions, and some common medicines such as steroids.
What is generally associated with a lower result
Broadly associated with favorable readings in most settings. Very low values are sometimes linked with an overactive thyroid, malnutrition, or recent acute illness, since cholesterol falls temporarily after infections and surgery.
Everyday things that move this number
Not every shift in a value reflects disease. These are ordinary factors known to affect this particular measurement:
- Recent acute illness or surgery, which can lower it for weeks
- Pregnancy, which raises it as a normal change
- Whether the sample was fasting, which mainly shifts the calculated parts of the panel
- Seasonal variation and recent weight change
- Common medicines, including steroids and some blood pressure treatments
Questions to take to your appointment
- How do the individual parts of my panel change the picture compared with the total alone?
- Could a thyroid check be useful alongside this?
- Did I need to fast for this draw, and should I next time?
Build a printable questionnaire with your own results →
Where to read more
MedlinePlus, from the US National Library of Medicine, publishes patient-facing pages on individual lab tests and is a reliable next stop: medlineplus.gov/lab-tests .
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