Clinical significance of serum ferritin compared to liver iron content, measured using magnetic resonance imaging, after allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation

Abstract

 This retrospective study evaluated the clinical significance of post-allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation serum ferritin (SF) levels and liver iron content (LIC), measured using liver magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Twenty-three transplant recipients with hematologic diseases were included. The median duration from transplant to LIC measurement was 13.4 months (range: 2.2-84.6 months). The median SF and LIC values were 947ng/mL (range: 191-8,082ng/mL) and 250µmol/gdw (range: 60-360µmol/gdw), respectively. LIC was moderately correlated to SF (r=0.53) and the units of transfused red blood cells (r=0.50). SF was moderately correlated to the units of RBCs (r=0.45), transferrin (r=-0.43), unsaturated iron binding capacity (r=-0.50), and C-reactive protein (r=0.40). In conclusion, in post-transplant recipients, it is suggested that SF reflects a combination of factors including iron overload and inflammation or hepatitis, while LIC seems to be a good non-invasive technique to quantify total body iron stores.