A recent study reported that hepcidin levels begin to normalise after 2 months of anti-tuberculosis treatment, suggesting a possible opportunity to intervene with oral iron supplementation after this time-point.4 As the prevalence of IDA is likely to vary between settings due to several factors, further studies from different contexts are needed to define: 1) what proportion of patients with TB (with and without HIV) have IDA, and 2) at what point during anti-tuberculosis treatment hepcidin levels normalise in these patients so that oral iron supplementation may be effective. Here, HAMP is linked to tuberculosis.