Staff Reporter: World Thalassaemia Day is observed globally on 8 May every year. On the occasion, Lab One Foundation of Thalassaemia and Rotary Club of Turag Uttara jointly organized a virtual seminar on Friday night to raise public awareness.
The scientific paper was presented by Prof Dr. Md Salahuddin Shah, Professor, Department of Hematology, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University and Founder President, Lab One Foundation of Thalassaemia.
The seminar was conducted Program Officer of the Lab One Group Bappy Bhowmik.
The chief guest was MA Wahab, Governor (Nominee) Engineer, Rotary International District 3261, Bangladesh. Dr. Jinat Ara, Vice President, Lab One Foundation of Thalassaemia presided over the function.
Distinguished online guest were Rotarian Rehan Reza, Chairman of the Kansas Democratic Party’s Asian Pacific Iceland Caucus, George Constantino, a member of the Board of Directors of the Thalassaemia International Federation and the Department of Hematology and BMT at the NHS Foundation Trust in England.
Also speaking were Rotary Internal District 3261, Rotarian M Khairul Alam, the recently departed Governor of Bangladesh, Prof Dr Liaquat Hossain Tapan, Chairman of the Department of Cardiology, Khulna Medical College, Rotary Club of Turag Uttara, Rotarian Matiur Rahman, Director of the Department of Health Dr Shafiur Rahman.
Professor Dr. Md. Salahuddin Shah said it is a hereditary blood disease. People with thalassaemia usually suffer from a lack of oxygen in the blood or anemia. Anemia can range from depression to disability. If both parents have the thalassaemia gene, it can be passed on from one generation to the next. This disease is not a contagious disease. This disease is caused by a genetic defect. About 10 percent of the country’s population carries the gene for thalassaemia and about 4 percent have thalassaemia.
MA Wahab said Lab One Foundation of Thalassaemia is working to provide low cost treatment to these patients. He assured the Lab One Foundation of its full support for this initiative.
Rehan Reza said that the disease can be almost completely eradicated if proper public awareness is created.
