Amyloidosis

Amyloidosis (pronounced am-i-loy-do'-sis) is a rare but very serious disease.

It is not a form of cancer, however, it can be so serious that it is disabling and even life-threathening. It is NOT contagious.

If you have never heard of this affliction, it is probably because it is very rare affecting only about 8 people out of every 1 million people. However it is also highly underdiagnosed due to the the difficulty of diagnosis.

I had never heard of it myself until I learned that Dr. Robert H. Keller, formulator of MaxGXL suffered from it. (Unfortunately, Dr. Keller died on June 5, 2009 from this serious illness.)

This affliction results when enough amyloid protein builds up in one or more bodily organs and eventually may cause them to stop working properly.

An amyloid (the word amyloid is pronounced am'-i-loyd) is basically a protein that is abnormal.

The telltale sign of this illness is the specific pattern in which it settles into the organs. The amyloids deposit as tiny fibrils(threadlike fibers or filaments) in a sheet-like fashion.

As you can see by the picture above amyloids tend to settle in the liver, pancreas, kidney, brain, heart, and spleen.

The organs most vulnerable are the kidneys, gastro-intestinal tract, heart, and nervous system.

There are actually dozens of different types of amyloidosis which have been identified (within the last 20 years) – ranging in seriousness from trivial to life-threatening.

The type of amyloidosis is identified through which type of amyloid and the type of amyloid is identified from where it originates.

For example, one of the types, Primary Amyloidosis (the type Dr. Robert Keller had), originates from the bone marrow:

The cells inside the bone marrow are what make antibodies. Antibodies are protective proteins against disease and infection. When these antibodies have completed their task they are then broken down and then recycled by the body.

The cells in the bone marrow of someone with amyloidosis, however, makes antibodies that are not able to be broken down. This leads to these antibodies building up in the bloodstream. Eventually these "defective" antibodies exit the bloodstream. They then settle in the organs as amyloids.

As the amyloids build up in the kidneys for example, it may eventually lead to kidney failure.

What causes it?

The causes are dependant on which type of this affliction you have.

According to the Mayo Clinic, there is no known cause (or treatment) for the Primary type.

However, there's a connection between several of the types and exposure to indoor fungus (mycotoxin exposure).

Also, less than one-tenth of people who suffer from Multiple Myeloma develop the type called, Secondary Amyloidosis. (Multiple Myeloma is a type of cancer of the bone marrow.)

There is also a form of this disease that is inherited (extremely rare), called Familial ATTR.

Symptoms

The symptoms are somewhat tricky since that is dependent on what specific organs are being affected.

When evaluating a patient with this disorder, it requires a careful review of all the body's organs to assess which ones are, or are not, affected by this affliction.

Because of the difficulty of the diagnosis, it is highly under diagnosed and many people die from complications of this disorder without ever having been diagnosed.

more general symptoms are:

Weakness
Weight loss
Diarrhea
Feeling full even though you only ate a smaller meal than usual
Enlarged tongue
Swollen ankles and legs
Numbness (or tingling) in the hands and/or feet
Shortness of breath
Dizziness upon standing
Severe fatigue

Majority of people afflicted by this disease are over the age of 40.