T owards Thalassemia Free India An initiative of Rotary Coimbatore Manchester

1. ROTARY COIMBATORE MANCHESTER Towards Thalassemia Free IndiaAn initiative of Rotary Coimbatore Manchester

2. ROTARY COIMBATORE MANCHESTER About Thalassemia Thalassemia is a genetic blood disorder in which a patient cannot make enough Red Blood Cells and needs to be supplemented with RBC transfusions every 2-3 weeks to stay healthy and to survive.

3. ROTARY COIMBATORE MANCHESTER Signs and symptoms Iron overload: People with thalassemia can get an overload of iron in their bodies, either from the disease itself or from frequent blood transfusions. Too much iron can result in damage to the heart, liver and endocrine system, which includes glands that produce hormones that regulate processes throughout the body. The damage is characterized by excessive deposits of iron. Without adequate iron chelation therapy, almost all patients with beta-thalassemia will accumulate potentially fatal iron levels

4. ROTARY COIMBATORE MANCHESTER Signs and symptoms Infection: people with thalassemia have an increased risk of infection. This is especially true if the spleen has been removed. Bone deformities: Thalassemia can make the bone marrow expand, which causes bones to widen. This can result in abnormal bone structure, especially in the face and skull. Bone marrow expansion also makes bones thin and brittle, increasing the risk of broken bones.

5. ROTARY COIMBATORE MANCHESTER Signs and symptoms • Enlarged spleen: the spleen aids in fighting infection and filters unwanted material, such as old or damaged blood cells. Thalassemia is often accompanied by the destruction of a large number of red blood cells and the task of removing these cells causes the spleen to enlarge. Splenomegaly can make anemia worse, and it can reduce the life of transfused red blood cells. Severe enlargement of the spleen may necessitate its removal. • Slowed growth rates:anemia can cause a child's growth to slow. Puberty also may be delayed in children with thalassemia. • Heart problems: Such as congestive heart failure and abnormal heart rhythms (arrhythmias), may be associated with severe thalassemia

6. ROTARY COIMBATORE MANCHESTER THALASSEMIA IN INDIA • The most common genetic blood disease in the world, thalassemia affects some 7 percent of the world's population. • An estimated 3.9 percent of India's population, or 1 in 25 people, carries the gene for thalassemia... • In India, around 80 to 90 percent of the 10,000 babies born each year with the disease die from it.... • The World Health Organization has predicted that one million people will have the disease there in the next 40 years.

7. ROTARY COIMBATORE MANCHESTER THALASSEMIA IN TAMILNADU • On an average, 5000 children are born with Thalassemia every year in the state of Tamil Nadu • In Nilgiri District about 300 children of Tribal Origin are affected by this disease who are not afford to treatments due to poverty.

8. ROTARY COIMBATORE MANCHESTER Treatment • Thalassemia major patients require regular blood transfusions and re­moval of excess iron by subcutaneous infusion of desferr­ioxamine.  • Children with Thalasemia are subjected to average 200 hours of needle pain and 54 pints of blood transfusion per annum. • A permanent Cure for Thalassemia is BONE MARROW TRANSPLANT which cost Rs.12 Lakhs to Rs.24 Lakhs which is not possible to the poor to take the transplant and further it is very difficult to get a matching donor.

9. ROTARY COIMBATORE MANCHESTER Costs and implications • Treating patients with Thalassemia is one of the most challenging tasks for the most of the Child care hospitals in India, as it requires approximately Rs.1,10,000 (Rupees One Lakhs Ten Thousand) per Annum for treatment alone.

10. ROTARY COIMBATORE MANCHESTER Our Club’s Initiative • Our Club inaugurated the Preventive Program Project Siranjeevi on 10th September 2013 at Santro Hall Hotel Vijay Park in by distributing Blood Transfusion filters to poor patients. • We are conducting various awareness programs and providing Blood Transfusion filters to 15 Thalassemia affected children costing Rs.16500/- every month. • We have contributed 138 filters costing Rs.84400/- till date.

11. ROTARY COIMBATORE MANCHESTER Our Club’s Initiative • We have conducted Thalassemia Awareness Camp at NAWA at Nilgiri District for the benefits of Tribals.

12. ROTARY COIMBATORE MANCHESTER

13. ROTARY COIMBATORE MANCHESTER An Appeal • Eradication and treatment is continuous process until elimination, We are planning to medical Camps to create awareness and treat the Thalassemia affected children of NilgiriDistict which requires huge funds. We need an amount of Rs.1,10,000 per person and for taking care of theses 42 children we need Rs.46,20,000. Hence we seek your kind hearted liberal contribution of blood transfusion filters and .

14. ROTARY COIMBATORE MANCHESTER Lets Eradicate • As Rotary Club contributed towards elimination of Polio in India Lets work together for eradication of Thalassemia in India. • We appeal kind hearted to support this nobel cause and relieve them from the pain of the deadly disease

15. ROTARY COIMBATORE MANCHESTER Secretariat at: 69-1 LML Colony, 3rd Street, Ammankulam Road, Pappanaickenpalayam Coimbatore -641037 Ph: 98430 96789 THANK YOU