article_snippet: Every week Amie has to get a nurse to attach a tube with a pump at the bottom to remove the excess iron from The youngster blood.
article_snippet: a pump at the bottom stays attached to a port running from her jugular vein into her heart six days a week..
article_snippet: a pump at the bottom is essential for Amie as too much iron in the blood can be fatal and can cause major organ failures. '
article_snippet: Amie's parents are hoping Amie body will start to regulate the iron in her body so that Amie only has to wear the pump at night time.
article_snippet: But frequent transfusions cause an accumulation of iron in Amie's body.
article_snippet: Because an overload of iron can cause damage to major organs if it is not properly managed, patients must take a 'chelation' drug to remove excess iron from patients bodies.
article_snippet: This can take the form of a nightly infusion of medication via a needle over a ten hour period and in other cases, an oral drug can be taken daily.
highlights_snippet: For six days out of the week, Amie is attached to a tube which removes excess iron from Amie blood .