Kidney/Pancreas
Issues with Iron/Anemia
February 14, 2023
in Kidney/Pancreas
Hi everyone,
I am a kidney/pancreas transplant recipient (it will be four years for me this April). I am wondering if there are other recipients who have had issues with anemia. I recently had an iron infusion, which was ordered by my hematologist. This is my third one in about 5-6 months. The low iron seems to be based on labs numbers (from one of my immunotherapy meds). So I'm curious to know if there are others who have had issues with anemia.
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I'm kidney only, but I've had iron issues that come and go. I had aranesp injections before and after my transplant. Now I'm stable to the point that they don't need to correct it now. Have you had aranesp (or equivalent) injections before? It might be worth it to talk to your hematologist. It works well in conjunction with iron infusions.
Hey, my son had iron deficiencies for the first few years after transplant but his diet normalizing and being on less medication seems to have helped him a lot.
I hope you can get your iron under control quickly. I imagine that must be so draining.
Hey Shelby! yes, I had Aranesp injections pre-transplant, but I didn't have to do them for long. I'm glad you mentioned that because I'd forgotten about them!
Thanks for the responses! My hematologist has done a great job of monitoring my levels and letting me know that my levels are low. Truth be told, at times, I would know that I was anemic because I do so much, and I just assume that I'm tired...which is probably true at times! I have to keep it monitored.
Transplant Patient
@Marydmac Congratulations on being almost 4 years with your Kid-panc Gifts of Life. 👏
Sorry to hear about your challenges with low iron.
I've always been anemic (pre & post my heart transplant, which happenned almost 8 years ago on April 20th).
Last year my levels had really dipped as I had to deal with some bleeding & a hematoma (all related to my bout with covid). My hemoglobin had dipped to 7 at one point & I needed 2 units of blood transfusion too.
Regular blood work helps me monitor.
Good luck to you!
I hope that you find some relief with that anemia. I also struggled with it after transplant and I’d know when I was feeling extra sluggish and nauseas that I needed to get my blood checked. I’ve been stable with my iron levels for the last 1 1/2 years, so I’m very grateful for that!
My 13yo daughter just got diagnosed with anemia so we are putting her on iron supplements. I’ve started cooking more with my cast iron skillet and I bought one of those iron fish that you boil in water for curries/soups to add extra iron. I’ll let you know how those go!
@Shelbycreates did you see any improvement with the iron fish or using the cast iron skillet?
Did you have anemia/iron issues before transplant too? I alos wonder if you recently changed your diet or started eating less sources of natural iron like red meat?
I am 18months post-KP Transplant, and have minor issues with both hemoglobin and iron now. I take supplements and those are enough to keep me feeling normal. But this has always been an issue for me - I was doing iron infusions and EPO injection every other month.