70% thalassemia patients fail to find matching tissue for stem cell transplant

BENGALURU : Stem cell transplant is a boon to patients suffering from thalassemia, but 70 per cent of needy patients don’t find a tissue (HLA) matching donor within their family, and need an unrelated matching blood stem cell donor, according to Dr Raghuram C P, consultant - Paediatric Haematology, Oncology and Bone Marrow Transplant, at Aster Hospitals. On the occasion of World Thalassemia Day on Sunday, Aster Hospitals in partnership with ‘i Love To Care’ (India) Charitable Trust and DKMS-BMST Foundation India, organised a drive to create awareness and encourage people to come forward and register as stem cell donors.

Dr Stalin Ramprakash, consultant - Paediatric Haematology, Oncology and BMT, Aster Hospitals, said, “Thalassemia is an inherited blood disorder that doesn’t let the body create enough haemoglobin. The disease weakens and destroys the blood cells. In India, every six minutes someone is diagnosed with blood cancer, thalassemia, or aplastic anaemia. Children with severe forms of thalassemia need lifelong blood transfusions and careful monitoring for complications of blood transfusion.

Healthy red cells are transfused to support their growth and development. But stem cell transplant can cure thalassemia. In this, the child’s original bone marrow is replaced with the new donor bone marrow which starts creating normal, healthy blood cells,” he said.