GAA star says ‘Celtic gene’ condition left him fearing he was a hypochondriac

The mid and late 1980s was a heady time for Meath football, and among the list of young men who became household names was a young rugby talent enticed away from the sport of his schooldays, David Beggy.

Beggy – or ‘Jinksy’ as he was known to all – made an immediate impression and wound up with a tally of two-All-Ireland medals; five Leinster; two NFLs, and he was twice named as an All-Star. He later returned to rugby for a spell, and coach Eddie O’Sullivan drafted him in to the Athlone side Buccaneers, a move that had him treading the turf of his forebears, since his grandmother Annie Kelly was a native of the town.

Bubbling away in the background, however, was a health issue that if left undetected could have left David with serious problems – haemochromatosis – and the symptoms first began to manifest themselves while he was still at the height of his career.

“I would have had an issue from early on in my 20s of vague complaints – aches and pains and fatigue, a lot of fatigue.

“But the aches and pains were being put down to football and getting hammered all the time, and the fatigue, you just learned to live with it.

“About 2003 or 2004 a doctor in the company I was working in at the time – Diageo – detected what it was.

“I was going to him and saying: ‘I’m just shattered all the time, and I have pains in my chest, and pains everywhere.’

“He did a couple of blood tests and he said: ‘Your iron levels are very high. Have you heard of a thing called haemochromatosis?’ I said: ‘No…’ and he said he’d do a couple of tests but that he thought that’s what it was, and in fairness, he picked it up.

“I got the gene test done and yeah, haemochromatosis and my iron levels were very high, and it was causing the fatigue.

“So, it was a bit of a shock at the start when you had not heard of anything like that, and you start thinking this, that and the other. But it’s quite a common occurrence: about one in 80 people have it in Ireland: it’s a ‘Celtic gene’ disorder really.

“Your body can’t get rid of iron; you take in the iron, but you can’t get rid of it.

“So for a number of months – maybe a year – I had a pint of blood removed every week or so, and got the levels down and I just get a couple of pints taken every six months or so and it helps keep the levels low.

“It was great to find out about it because it has consequences if it is not treated, but I was lucky enough in that I had no damage done at this stage.

“Really when you are diagnosed you are sorted, as it is just a matter of getting the levels down and keeping them low.

“I go every 4-6 months to get a test and have a pint taken out during the test appointment. You build up a relationship with the people you are dealing with, and they set out a routine for you.

“You can’t avoid iron: it’s in everything and I didn’t have a diet change or anything like that.

“When you get diagnosed, you do feel a bit uneasy because you can end up with heart issues and joint issues and various other things – but once you get a handle on it, you are fine and you will always be fine once you keep an eye on your levels.

“It’s also great when you find out what it is, because for years I was going to doctors and asking what was wrong with me but no one knew anything, and it was a great relief to get a diagnosis and know you are not a hypochondriac.

“If you are feeling out of shape and it’s not for any particular reason, get a blood test and get them to test your iron levels.”