Pathophysiology
Polycythemia vera (PCV), being a primary polycythemia, is caused by neoplastic proliferation and maturation of erythroid, megakaryocytic and granulocytic elements to produce what is referred to as panmyelosis. In contrast to secondary polycythemias, PCV is associated with a low serum level of the hormone erythropoietin (EPO). Instead, PCV cells have a mutation in the tyrosine kinase (JAK2), which acts in signaling pathways of the EPO-receptor, rendering those cells hypersensitive to EPO.
Read more about this topic: Polycythemia Vera