My little sister is 30 years old. She just found out she has primary hemochromatosis… http://digestive.niddk.nih.gov/ddiseases/pubs/hemochromatosis/index.htm
I think it used to be called Bronzing Disease - because the overload of iron in the body can cause your skin to turn colours. I vaguely remember a show on the discovery or the learning or the health channel talking about it.
Now something else I have to get blood test for, as it is hereditary/genetic - so that means my parents carry the gene, so any of us siblings could develop it (I think it’s a 1 in 4 chance or something). I already have to have my Graves’ blood work done all the time, I also have to have the fasting glucose test for diabetes done every year (diabetes runs in our family like crazy), cholesterol tests (high cholesterol runs in the family - as well as my Graves’ causing cholesterol issues…), liver enzyme tests (due to my medications ;/) now I get to have these ferritin tests done too - with a followup of genetic testing for confirmation if the results are unsatisfactory…
At least she is young - most females don’t get diagnosed with this disorder until they are in their 50’s - after the damage to the organs has been done.
Her iron level was over 2000… Normal iron levels are 10 - 200.
The only treatment is having a phlebotomy (pint blood draws like for blood donations) several times a month until her levels are normalized, then she’ll have to have ‘maintenance’ ones done every few months for the rest of her life. And of course, avoid consuming too much iron and vitamin c… That’ll be a pain to do since everything is Iron fortified (just like everything is iodine enriched…)…
