Jammu, 23 September 2024: To help address one of the India’s critical healthcare challenges – thalassemia - Medanta - The Medicity, one of India's leading multi-speciality hospitals, conducted an awareness session on bone marrow transplant (BMT) for doctors in Jammu. The initiative led by Dr. Satya Prakash Yadav, Director, Bone Marrow Transplant, Medanta aimed to educate the local medical community and raise awareness about bone marrow transplant (BMT) as a curative option for life-threatening conditions like thalassemia, blood cancer, and bone marrow failure. Thalassemia is a common congenital blood disorder that affects the body’s ability to produce red blood cells, making regular blood transfusions essential for survival. In India, the northern regions, including Jammu, bear a significant burden of this condition and currently lack a bone marrow transplant facility, creating a gap that makes access to this critical treatment nearly impossible for patients. This blood disorder often forces children in Jammu to rely on frequent transfusions to survive. Additionally, India bears the burden of the highest number of children suffering from thalassemia major, with estimates ranging between 100,000 and 150,000, contributing to about 10% of the global thalassemia burden. A stem cell or bone marrow transplant (BMT) is the only cure, with the best outcomes usually achieved when performed early in life. A BMT from a fully matched sibling donor has a success rate of over 90%, offering a permanent solution for patients. “Dr. Satya Prakash Yadav, Director of Bone Marrow Transplant at Medanta, Gurugram, stated, “Despite being curable, Thalassemia remains a significant health concern in India. Many families are unaware of BMT, a treatment with high success rate when intervention is early, and a fully matched donor is available. Our patient education efforts aim to provide insight into success rates, costs, and support systems, empowering families, and professionals to consider BMT as a viable option and overcome access barriers.” He further emphasised the need for doctors, healthcare providers, policymakers, and the public to work together in raising awareness, dispelling myths, and creating a supportive environment for bone marrow transplant. Through these collective efforts, we can save countless lives and significantly improve the health outcomes for thousands of chilren affected by thalassemia. This initiative in Jammu is part of Medanta’s larger effort to raise awareness and improve access to BMT across India. In collaboration with Coal India, Medanta has embarked on a national mission to reduce the burden of thalassemia by supporting BMT for affected patients. Through this partnership, financial aid is made available to patients in need, ensuring that economic constraints do not prevent them from receiving this life-saving treatment.