why can’t people with anemia (not enough iron in blood) get blood transfers from donors who have hemochromatosis (too much iron in blood)?
In: Biology
Not seeing the correct answer to your specific question, so I’ll jump in.
To start, we need iron to make healthy red blood cells.
Anemia isn’t a lack of iron, it’s a lack of red blood cells. Low iron is one common cause, but most of the time this anemia isn’t severe enough on its own to need a transusion. Most of the time, just giving more iron is easier and safer, and our body can do the rest. Importantly, there are other conditions that cause anemia that DO require transfusions more often, like cancer and sickle cell disease. In these patients, there is no lack of iron to start with, they just can’t use it effectively.
In hemochromatosis, patients gradually get too much iron in their bodies. This can damage different organs, especially the liver. Drawing off blood forces their bodies to make red blood cells faster than usual, and use up the iron.
If someone gets a lot of transfusions, they can actually end up with too much iron in their bodies. This happens because some of the transfused cells break down quickly and release their iron too fast, and because your storage still isn’t being used up. If they get blood from people with hemochromatosis, that injury could happen more quickly, because those donors often have more iron to start with.
That’s the theory underlying the rule in the US at least. I’m not sure how big a difference there is on a practical level, and I’m not sure what rules are in other countries.
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