HFE Cys282Tyr homozygotes with serum ferritin concentrations below 1000 μg/L are at low risk of hemochromatosis

Abstract

Hemochromatosis gene (HFE)-associated hereditary hemochromatosis (HH) is a genetic predisposition to iron overload and subsequent signs and symptoms of disease that potentially affects approximately 80,000 persons in Australia and almost 1 million persons in the United States. Most clinical cases are homozygous for the Cys282Tyr (C282Y) mutation in the HFE gene, with serum ferritin (SF) concentration >1000 μg/L as the strongest predictor of cirrhosis. The optimal treatment regimen for those with SF concentrations above the normal range but <1000 μg/L is unknown. We assessed HFE mutations in a prospective cohort of 31,192 participants of northern European descent, aged 40-69 years. An HFE-str..