A salute to the silent warriors - Caregivers of Thalassemia patients!
If you have never heard the word Thalassemia before, it is good news. Those who have seen some of their near and dear ones go through the illness may even tell - you are lucky! The prevalence of Thalassemia in India is 4% - which translates to almost 5 crore individuals at risk of the illness, many of whom will require lifelong blood transfusions to just survive. Just imagine what the child and the parents must be going through dealing with the illness and its complications. The best way to deal with it is to have knowledge about the illness and its treatment and most importantly seek support from experts - haematologists and mental health workers to live a life that is fulfilling. Thalassemia is an inherited illness of the blood, the oxygen carrying capacity of blood decreases in it. It affects the child as oxygen is what we live on, the body compensates for this reduced efficiency of blood cells to carry oxygen by producing more blood cells - causing abnormality in face appearance