2001 Volume 42 Issue 7 Pages 571-574
A 33 year-old female patient presented with apparent skin pigmentation, sustained liver dysfunction and impaired glucose tolerance. She had received blood transfusions totalling more than 40,000 ml for myelodysplastic syndrome and an allogeneic bone marrow transplant from her HLA-matched sister at the age of 31. Ferrokinetic data showed a significant iron overload. Magnetic resonance imaging suggested excessive iron deposition in the liver. The patient was diagnosed as having secondary hemochromatosis. She was given subcutaneous injections of 6,000 units of recombinant human erythropoietin initially twice a week and then weekly, and phlebotomies were performed to maintain her hemoglobin level above 10 g/dl. Three years later, the total volume of phlebotomized blood reached 24,000 ml, and her ferrokinetic data, serum transaminase levels, glucose tolerance and skin color were significantly improved.
