What Is Amyloidosis, Rare Health Condition Former Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf Was Suffering From

All About Amyloidosis

Amyloidosis is a rare when an abnormal protein called amyloid builds up in your tissues and organs. When it does, it affects their shape and how they work. Amyloidosis is a serious health problem that can lead to life-threatening organ failure. Amyloid deposits can build up in the heart, brain, kidneys, spleen and other parts of the body. A person may have amyloidosis in one organ or several.

Amyloidosis may be secondary to a different health condition or can develop as a primary condition. Sometimes it is due to a mutation in a gene, but other times the cause of amyloidosis remains unknown.

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Signs and Symptoms

• Feeling very weak or tired
• Losing weight without trying
• Swelling in the belly, legs, ankles or feet
• Numbness, pain or tingling in hands or feet
• Skin that bruises easily
• Purple spots (purpura) or bruised-looking areas of skin around the eyes
• Bleeding more than usual after an injury
• Increased tongue size
• Shortness of breath

Types Of Amyloidosis

There are different types of amyloidosis like AL amyloidosis that affects kidneys, spleen, heart etc. AA amyloidosis is caused by fragments of amyloid A protein Transthyretin amyloidosis (ATTR) can be inherited from a family member (familial amyloidosis). There are other forms of amyloidosis, including APOA1, gelsolin, fibrinogen, and lysozyme.

Treatment

As there are different types of this rare illness, the treatment is subjective. After diagnosing the illness by conducting proper tests, doctor may suggest medications, chemotherapy, bone marrow transplant, immunotherapy, pacemaker, stem cell transplant etc.

Men get amyloidosis more often than women. Your risk for amyloidosis goes up as you grow older. Amyloidosis affects 15% of patients with a form of cancer called multiple myeloma.