Ferriscan – pro
Patients with haemoglobinopathies, such as -thalassaemia and sickle cell disease (SCD), and other transfusion-dependent anaemias usually require regular blood transfusions which leads to iron accumulation in the heart and liver. Iron chelation therapy is used to prevent iron toxicity but requires close monitoring of body iron levels to ensure optimal dosage and avoid potential adverse effects of excess chelator treatment. Ferriscan, in place of invasive liver biopsy and direct iron measurements, is used to do so. Several studies showed that 2*-MRI (or R2*) is correlated with liver biopsy iron concentration.
U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has given the company permission to market its FerriScan R2-MRI device as an imaging companion diagnostic device in the use of Exjade pharmaceutical therapy. Although the Ferriscan R2 method has been widely used, recent consensus and guidelines endorse R2*-MRI as the most accurate and reproducible method for LIC estimation, However, with FDA approval, the use of FErriscan should be considered medically necessary.
https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/cdrh_docs/pdf12/K124065.pdf, 9/9/2025
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