Excellent Video Introduction to Hemochromatosis: From one of the world's leading experts

-
Prof. Martina Muckenthaler, PhD Head of Molecular Medicine University of HeidelbergHere's some good news for anyone trying to understand hemochromatosis, the most widespread hereditary disease in the Western world: a one hour video-taped lecture from one of the world's leading experts on the subject, Professor Martina Muckenthaler, PhD., Head of Molecular Medicine at the University of Heidelberg.

What is particularly awesome about this video is a. the English subtitles, b. the professor's superb  pedagogical style as she leads her audience of university students from a simple introduction to hemochromatosis to a detailed explanation of its mechanisms at the molecular level.

Even if you watch just the first 15 minutes you will get a good sense of why the world needs to know more about haemochromatosis (the British English version of the spelling is used in the subtitles). Here at Celtic Curse.org we are the first to admit that hemochromatosis is not easy to explain (and we've spent a lot of time trying to explain it). So we were delighted to encounter this video in our ongoing ferreting out of useful information about this debilitating, frequently misdiagnosed, and potentially fatal condition.

Being able to refer people to this video will help us a lot in our efforts to educate the public and we certainly think it could be used by doctors who have patients with iron overload symptoms. Given the widespread lack of coordinated healthcare in America today, every person needs to do as much self-education as possible when it comes to their health. For example, if you have learned through genetic testing that you have mutant alleles of the HFE gene (C282Y and H63D) then this video will help you understand what that means.

To watch the video, click the image above or use this direct link (http://cdsweb.cern.ch/record/1136907) which we encourage you to share.

Comments

  1. Nick HowesFebruary 8, 2012 at 6:45 PM

    "...our ongoing ferreting..." Almost ferritin - very droll!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Hemochromatosis, Iron Overload, Hemopause, and CelticCurse dot org: an update for 2024

-
Image
A note from Stephen Cobb who launched the CelticCurse.org website in July of 2010 with this headline: The Work Begins Here: Teaching the world about the Celtic Curse. I began that first article with this statement: "The more people know about hemochromatosis, a genetic condition often referred to as Celtic Curse, the fewer will suffer needlessly and die tragically." That statement remains true today, more than 14 years after I wrote it. The effort to fight hereditary hemochromatosis by informing people about this surprising common genetic mutation—and the potentially fatal condition of iron overload that it can create—needs to continue in 2024.  Thankfully, over the last decade a growing number organizations and online efforts have appeared and expanded to reach more and more people. Here are just a few of them, from around the world: Hemochromatosis.org Iron Disorders Institute Haemochromatosis UK The Irish Haemochromatosis Association American Hemochromatosis Society Ca...
Read more

Hemingway's Death and Hemochromatosis Awareness

-
Image
Ernest Hemingway, one of America's greatest writers, died from hereditary hemochromatosis on July 2, 1961. He was one of a number of Hemingways who succumbed to America's most prevalent genetic killer, a condition that is remarkably cheap and easy to treat, and may do very little damage if detected early enough. If you're like me, you were taught in school that Hemingway died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. However, it is clear to many that the underlying cause of his death was iron overload due to hereditary hemochromatosis or HHC, also known as bronze diabetes and Celtic Curse. Why? Hemingway suffered from classic iron overload issues, like liver problems, heart disease, diabetes. Depression and suicide are both associated with hemochromatosis (numerous people on his family tree committed suicide). [The first version of this article was written by Stephen Cobb in 2011. It was revised in 2016 and refreshed more recently to mark World Haemochromatosis Week 2020 , J...
Read more

HFE testing: an open letter to the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics

-
Dear American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics: According to a recent article on GenomeWeb your organization, the ACMG has declared that: "HFE testing shouldn't be ordered for patients who don't have iron overload or a family history of HFE-related hereditary hemochromatosis." Frankly, this is some of the worst medical advice I've ever seen published, it defies the logic of real life, and does so in a way that reinforces a number of medical stereotypes. I invite the ACMG to address the following five realities as they relate to the two limited conditions under which your organization would permit people to find out whether or not they are carriers of a potentially crippling and deadly genetic condition, otherwise know as HFE testing. A. Re: "a family history of HFE-related hereditary hemochromatosis" In your version of reality, how do people know if they have a family history of HFE-related hereditary hemochromatosis (HHC)? In the real world, ma...
Read more