Symptomatology usually begins at middle age but
may be detected earlier. Early symptoms are nonspecific: weakness, joint and
digestive pains, palpitations, and loss of menstrual periods. Abnormal liver
function tests can be detected earlier, in the absence of other symptoms.
Left untreated, late symptoms appear: bronze skin pigmentation, liver
cirrhosis, or hepatocellular carcinoma, diabetes mellitus,
panhypopituitarism, dysrhythmias, and cardiac failure, joint disorders,
chronic abdominal pain, extreme weakness, and tendency to recurrent
infections.