There is a two generations in my husbands family of secondary Addison's disease, although I am told they are not hereditary, I find it hard to believe that it is just coincidence that these illnesses can happen in one family without them being connected in some way. I don't understand what the difference is between primary and secondary Addison's disease. Any info about this would be great.
Some of patients who have been diagnosed with Secondary Addison’s disease were under the impression that the "Secondary" meant they had a minor form of Addison's disease. This is certainly not the case and the difference between Primary Secondary Addison's diseases is the cause of the lack of cortisol. Addison's disease is often caused by an auto-immune process, in other words, the cause often appears to be an immune attack on adrenal tissue, particularly the adrenal cortex where cortisol, aldosterone and androgens are made.
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