Expert Proposes Mandatory Pre-Marital Screening To Curb Thalassaemia

KUALA LUMPUR, May 1 (Bernama) -- An expert on thalassaemia, an inherited blood disorder, has suggested mandatory pre-marital screening to prevent the disease which affects over 2,500 people in Malaysia.
Prof A. Rahman A. Jamal, the advisor of the Federation of Malaysian Thalassaemia Societies (FTMS), said such screening in Cyprus and Greece, which accounted for the world's largest number of patients, had reduced the number of new patients by over 90 per cent.
He said proactive steps to minimise the growth in the number of patients would reduce the huge financial burden of care and treatment.
The cost of treating a thalassaemia patient is estimated at between RM10,000 and RM26,000 per year, he said in a statement in conjunction with the two-day Second National Thalassaemia Seminar from Saturday.
However, he said, the lack of awareness among carriers, who accounted for three to five per cent of the population, and religious and cultural sensitivities regarding the availability of choices in managing the disease were the main stumbling blocks in reducing the number of patients.
The thalassaemia seminar is organised jointly by the Health Ministry, Malaysian Society of Paediatric Hematology and Oncology (MASPHO) and FTMS.
It will be preceded by a two-day course on the clinical management of thalassaemia.
MASPHO president Dr Hishamshah Ibrahim said continuous efforts must be made to explore viable options to deal with the disease as Malaysia is in the thalassaemia belt.
"Our joint aim is to reduce the number of new cases and optimise the treatment of current patients," she said.
FTMS president Ramli Yunus praised the government for allocating RM40 million for screening, prevention and treatment including free iron chelation therapy for child patients.
"It has greatly reduced the financial burden of patients and their families," he said.