Clinical Trials for Hemochromatosis

The NIDDK conducts and supports clinical trials in many diseases and conditions, including liver diseases. The trials look to find new ways to prevent, detect, or treat disease and improve quality of life.

What are clinical trials for hemochromatosis?

Clinical trials—and other types of clinical studies—are part of medical research and involve people like you. When you volunteer to take part in a clinical study, you help doctors and researchers learn more about disease and improve health care for people in the future.

Researchers are conducting clinical studies to better understand liver diseases, such as hemochromatosis.

Find out if clinical studies are right for you.

What clinical studies for hemochromatosis are looking for participants?

You can view a filtered list of clinical studies on hemochromatosis that are federally funded, open, and recruiting at www.ClinicalTrials.gov. You can expand or narrow the list to include clinical studies from industry, universities, and individuals; however, the NIH does not review these studies and cannot ensure they are safe. Always talk with your health care provider before you participate in a clinical study.

How has NIDDK- and NIH-funded research advanced the understanding of hemochromatosis?

The NIDDK and other components of the NIH, such as the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), support basic research to increase our understanding of hemochromatosis and lay the foundation for future advances in diagnosis and treatment. For example

• NIDDK-funded researchers were among the group of investigators who discovered that mutations of the HFE gene cause hemochromatosis
• NIDDK-funded researchers discovered iron transporters in the small intestine
• the NHLBI-funded Hemochromatosis and Iron Overload Screening Study (HEIRS) examined the prevalence, genetic and environmental causes, and the effect of iron overload and primary hemochromatosis in a group of about 100,000 adults from multiple ethnic backgrounds