For the last several years my liver enzymes have not been normal – but just a little high.  During my normal physical in the summer of 2015 the blood tests identified continued high values for AST and ALT. My doctor thought is was time to look at this in more detail and referred me to a hemotolgist.  He defined many blood tests to be performed.  They identified that my iron levels were high – very high.  The normal range for Ferritin is 24-336. My test results in July were a little above this range. I had many blood tests performed over the next several months. In March of 2016 my levels were over 3.300 – almost 10 times what was considered normal.  Additional tests were performed to try to identify the root cause of the high iron levels.  One of the tests would have identified if hemachromotis was the cause – the test was negative for this condition.  A liver biopsy was performed – the biopsy showed my liver was normal – with a little fatty liver. The doctor said all of the test results were consistent with hemochromotis – that I had tested negative for.

The net is the root cause was not identified.  The cause is likely related to either Cronkhite-Canada Syndrome or one of the medications.  The hematologist believes CCS is the likely cause as there is a strong relationship between the intestinal system and the liver.

I had eight phlebotomies (one a week) that brought my Ferritin levels down in to the normal range.  The current approach is to have blood tests performed every 8 weeks with one phlebotomy performed every six months.  My iron remains in the normal range – though not as low as the doctor originally targeted.  I meet with the doctor in a few weeks to determine if I will continue on this schedule.