This is true for ferritin levels and iron levels in the organs as well, it is important for patients to go regularly for transfusions in order to maximize good health, normal ferritin levels run anywhere between 24 and 336 ng/ml, hematologists generally do not begin chelation therapy until ferritin levels reach at least 1000 ng/ml. It is more important to check iron levels in the organs through MRI scans, however, than to simply get regular blood tests to check ferritin levels, which only show a trend, and do not reflect actual organ iron content. Gene therapy
Gene therapy, as well as, bone marrow transplant are also possible treatments for the disorder, but each have their own risks at this point in time. Bone marrow transplantation is the more used method between the two, whereas researchers are still trying to definitively establish the results of gene therapy treatment. It generally requires a 10/10 HLA matched donor, however, who is usually a sibling. As most patients do not have this, they must rely on gene therapy research to potentially provide them with an alternative. CDA at both clinical and genetic aspects are part of a heterogeneous group of genetic conditions. Gene therapy is still experimental and has largely only been tested in animal models until now.
This type of therapy has promise, however, as it allows for the autologous transplantation of the patients own healthy stem cells rather than requiring an outside donor, thereby bypassing any potential for graft vs. host disease (GVHD).In the United States, the FDA approved clinical trials on Beta thalassemia patients in 2012. The first study, which took place in July 2012, recruited human subjects with thalassemia major,

See also
Thalassemia
Hemoglobinopathy
List of hematologic conditions

References
Further reading
Greer, John P.; Arber, Daniel A.; Glader, Bertil; List, Alan F.; Means, Robert T.; Paraskevas, Frixos; Rodgers, George M. (2013-08-29). Wintrobes Clinical Hematology. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. ISBN 9781469846224. Iolascon, Achille; Delaunay, Jean; Wickramasinghe, Sunitha N.; Perrotta, Silverio; Gigante, Maddalena; Camaschella, Clara (2001-08-15). "Natural history of congenital dyserythropoietic anemia type II". Blood. 98 (4): 1258–1260. doi:10.1182/blood.V98.4.1258. ISSN 0006-4971. PMID 11493480. == External links ==