Ali Hassan
Punjab Health Minister Dr. Yasmin Rashid inaugurated the 15th National Thalassemia Conference and Workshop at Fatima Jinnah Medical University here on Saturday.
Present on the occasion were Vice Chancellor Fatima Jinnah Medical University Prof. Amir Zaman Khan, Major General (Retd) Suhaib, Professor Javeria Mannan, General (Retd) Moinuddin Haider, Professor Yasmin Ihsan, Dr. Hussain Jaffery, a large number of Thalassemics, parents, doctors and social workers from inside and outside the country joined via video link.
Thalassemia is the most common genetic disorder in Pakistan. The gene prevalence of Thalassemia is around 6 per cent which means that 6 out of every 100 Pakistanis carry this mutant gene. Arguable around 12 million people are healthy carriers of this gene. Thalassemia is an autosomal recessive disease, which means that if two carriers get married to each other then they will have a 1 in 4 (25%) chance of having an offspring with Thalassemia Major in every pregnancy. Currently, the majority of the patients in Pakistan do not get adequate treatment.
The Health Minister Dr. Yasmin Rashid said, “I appreciate VC FJWU and Thalassemia Federation of Pakistan for holding an important conference. Every day about 17 children are born with this genetic disorder. The Bill on Thalassemia premarital tests will be passed very soon. The treatment through Bone Marrow Transplant is very expensive and we have never paid due attention to this disease in the past. General (Retd) Saleem and Maj Gen (Retd) Suhaib deserve appreciation for great services. The wok of the team performing for the last 26 years is praiseworthy. Pakistan was the first Muslim country to perform Thalassemia genetic test in 1994. We took Thalassemia children to K2 mountain for the first time. Dr. Yasmin Ihsan also has rendered commendable services for training gynaecologists on Thalassemia. The Thalassemia Society of Pakistan is providing great services and all organizations working on the disease need to come together at one platform. Separate beds will be reserved for Thalassemia patients in Punjab and we are thinking of establish Thalassemia wards in DHQ hospitals.
Responding to queries of journalists, the Minister said that the condition of Chaudhry Shujaat was improving as per latest reports. She said a team of senior doctors at Services Hospitals is attending Chaudhry Shujaat. She urged people to observe precautionary measures in the wake of the second wave of Corona Pandemic.
