Children suffering from thalassemia enjoy rides at Fun City. PHOTO: EXPRESS
ISLAMABAD: Children suffering from Thalassemia who usually spend most of their time in hospitals were taken to Fun City to play games and swing bringing smile and joy on their faces.
Amongst other life-threatening diseases, Thalassemia (genetic disorder) is on the increase in Pakistan where lack of knowledge and ignorance continues to compound the problem. Thalassemia is a hereditary condition of blood, affecting the red blood cells which leads to absolute or virtual deficiency in the body and ultimately make patients transfusion- dependent for the rest of their lives.
In this regard Fun City in collaboration with Thalassemia Awareness & Prevention in Pakistan (TAPP) arranged fun time activities for Thalassemia Majors to add colour to their life. Fun City centres are located at the Giga Mall and the Centaurus Mall, Islamabad. They offer a variety of International standard indoor amusement rides, arcade games and soft play facility.
“At Fun City Pakistan, we are committed to have a lasting, positive impact on thousands of communities. Under our One Good Heart CSR programme, this activity was to bring light to the Thalassemia patients who are of age five and above,” said Fun City at Centaurus Mall Centre Manager Hani Mustafa.
“Children carrying such disease go through various routine medical tests and treatments, our team has ensured that they get the best possible entertainment at Fun City to enjoy and bring smiles to their brave faces,” Mustafa added.
“Thalassemia Children live with continuous pains and lot of other problems,” said Ayesha Abid of TAPP. “These doomed families are glued to the hospitals rather than enjoying the childhood of their kids. Blood, syringes and other medications become their part and parcel of life. Lifelong treatment drags them into depression and other psychological problems so such kind of activities creates very good impact on Thalassemia children which make them confident and motivated them towards life”.
“If we get ourselves tested for Thalassemia gene and avoid marriage between two carriers,” she said, “than Thalassemia associated complications and problems absolutely can be avoided.”
Prevention
Thalassemia Major is a very serious yet preventable disorder. The Thalassemia carriers in most cases are easily identifiable by simple blood tests.
The most practical and feasible option is carrier screening, especially extended family screening.
Sustained survival of the affected individuals depends on regular blood transfusions once and at times twice a month; hence it is the biggest burden on our transfusion centres. After receiving multiple blood transfusions, iron overloaded in their body can damage their different organs and cause various complications. Infections such as hepatitis B/C and HIV/ AIDS can be transmitted through contaminated blood.
Thalassemia cannot be passed on to another person. Thalassemia has several types depending on the causative genetic mutation while has mainly three clinical types namely Thalassemia minor (mild anaemia), Thalassemia Intermedia (moderate anaemia) and Thalassemia major (severe anaemia). Pakistan has a carrier rate of around 6 to 8% in general population for Thalassemia Minor meaning that about 10 million people of our population are Thalassemia carriers.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 18th, 2018.
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