Dr. Lee was born in Shanghai, China, and received his college and medical training in the United States. He is fluent in English and three Chinese dialects. He graduated with chemistry departmental honors from Harvey Mudd College. He was appointed president of AOA society at UCLA School of Medicine. He underwent internal medicine residency and gastroenterology fellowship training at Cedars Sinai Medical Center.
Jay W. Marks, MD, is a board-certified internist and gastroenterologist. He graduated from Yale University School of Medicine and trained in internal medicine and gastroenterology at UCLA/Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles.
Hereditary hemochromatosis is an inherited (genetic)
disorder in which there is excessive accumulation of iron in the body (iron
overload). It is a common genetic disorder among Caucasians in the United
States, affecting approximately one in 240 to 300 Caucasians. Individuals affected
with hereditary hemochromatosis may have no symptoms or signs (and have normal
longevity), or they can have severe symptoms and signs of iron overload that
include sexual dysfunction, heart failure,
joint pains, liver
cirrhosis ,
diabetes mellitus,
fatigue, and darkening of skin.
The normal iron content of the body is three to four grams. The
total amount of iron in the body is carefully controlled. The body loses one mg of
iron daily from sweat and cells that are shed from the skin and the inner lining
of the intestines. Women also lose one mg of iron daily on average from. In normal adults the intestines absorb one mg of iron daily from food to replace the lost
iron, and therefore, there is no excess accumulation of iron in the body. When
iron losses are greater, more iron is absorbed from food.
In individuals with hereditary hemochromatosis, the
daily absorption of iron from the intestines is greater than the amount needed
to replace losses. Since the normal body cannot increase iron excretion, the
absorbed iron accumulates in the body. At this rate of iron accumulation, a man
with hemochromatosis can accumulate 20 gram of total body iron by age 40 to 50. This excess iron deposits in
the joints, liver, testicles, and heart,
which causes damage to these organs, and causes signs and symptoms of hemochromatosis.
Women with hemochromatosis accumulate iron at a slower rate than men because
they lose more iron than men due to iron loss from menstruation and breastfeeding. Therefore, they typically develop signs and symptoms of organ damage due to
excess iron 10 years later then men.
Congestive heart failure (CHF) is a condition in which the heart's function as a pump is inadequate to meet the body's needs. A poor blood supply resulting
Liver disease can be cause by a variety of things including infection (hepatitis), diseases such as gallstones, high cholesterol or triglycerides, blood
Diabetes mellitus is a chronic condition characterized by high levels of sugar (glucose) in the blood. The two types of diabetes are referred to as type
Arthritis is inflammation of one or more joints. When joints are inflamed they can develop stiffness, warmth, swelling, redness and pain. There are over
Liver cancer is the fifth most common cancer in the world and the majority of patients with liver cancer will die within one year as a result. Patients
Palpitations are unpleasant sensations of irregular and/or forceful beating of the heart. Palpitations can be relieved in many patients by stress reduction,
Impotence, also known as erectile dysfunction, is a common
problem among men characterized by the consistent inability to sustain an
erection sufficient
Iron is a mineral our bodies need. Iron deficiency is a condition resulting from not enough iron in the body. It is the most common nutritional deficiency
Pseudogout, a form of arthritis, results when deposits of crystals collect in and around the joints. Symptoms of pseudogout include pain, stiffness, warmth,
The liver is the largest solid organ in the body, and is actually an gland. The liver has a wide variety of critical functions such as manufacturing proteins
Beta Thalassemia is the most familiar type of thalassemia. Thalassemia is not just one disease but rather a complex series of genetic (inherited) disorders
Porphyria is a group of disorders that affect the nervous system, skin, or both. Porphyria is often an inherited condition that causes blistering, itching,
Restrictive cardiomyopathy, the rarest form of cardiomyopathy, is a condition in which the walls of the lower chambers of the heart (the ventricles) are
