Transplantation of haemochromatosis liver and intestine into a normal recipient

#### Background Haemochromatosis is a common genetic disease leading to iron overload. Although the gene had been identified ( HFE ),1 the pathogenesis had not been fully elucidated.2 The inadvertent transplant of a C282Y homozygous liver and intestine provided a unique opportunity to study this problem. ##### Methods A 19 year old man underwent orthotopic liver and intestinal transplantation in January 1997 for the treatment of short bowel syndrome secondary to a mid gut volvulus with resection and cholestatic liver disease resulting from total parenteral nutrition. The organ donor was an 18 year old woman posthumously discovered to be a C282Y homozygote for haemochromatosis. ##### Results Preoperative recipient …