As mentioned previously, the standard treatment for hemochromatosis is phlebotomy, i.e., bloodletting. To give you a better idea as to how effective it can be, I would like to share the progression of degrees by which my ferritin levels have decreased. As a reminder, ferritin is used as a marker for iron overload disorders. The normal/standard range is between 22ng/mL and 365ng/mL. At the beginning of this little adventure, you may recall that my levels were at 1295ng/mL; extremely high, to say the least. Here are all of my levels to date:
10/16/14 - 1295ng/mL
12/04/14 - 1233ng/mL
12/17/14 - 1124ng/mL (after 1st treatment)
12/26/14 - 1016ng/mL (after 2nd treatment)
01/02/15 - 795ng/mL (after 3rd treatment)
After only three treatments to date, my ferritin levels have dropped 500ng/mL, with the highest drop occurring after the most recent appointment (221ng/mL!). Not too bad. Not too bad at all. At this rate I think it is conceivable to only have perhaps seven or eight more weekly treatments before achieving the goal of 50ng/mL. Then, I assume, we examine how quickly my body "loads" and adjust the actual frequency of my treatments.
Pretty good news to start 2015 with!
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