PESAHWAR, Oct 27: Diversion of donations to quake-hit people has adversely affected poor thalassaemic children as its treatment through blood transfusion is expensive.

Aamir, 15 and suffering from thalassaemia, came to the Fatmid Foundation for blood transfusion for the first time when he was just six-month old. He has been coming here from Charsadda district for transfusions at least three times a month because he cannot afford the expenses in a private hospital.

The poor thalassaemia patients who need regular treatment could get neglected if the donations are stopped and the neglect may push them to death.

Qaiser Khan from Pir Piyaee village, who was standing next to his 10-year old son Yousuf, said that he had brought his son to the Fatmid Foundation to get free medicines and blood transfusions for him, a facility he could never think of affording as he was jobless.

The thalassaemic children need frequent transfusions of red cells and regular iron chelation therapy which costs more than Rs6,000 per child per month.

“The cost of one transfusion is Rs1,500 and some children who belong to poor families come here for transfusion thrice or even four times a month, said Mr Afzal Hassan Khan, the administrator of the Fatmid Foundation, providing medication and blood transfusion services to thalassaemic children. The foundation provides free of cost transfusion facility to poor patients with the help of donations it receives.

However, the foundation is currently facing problems in providing free of cost facility to poor patients as the donors who regularly make donations to it, have donated this time to the earthquake survivors, Mr Khan said.

“Thalassaemic children at the Fatmid are permanent patients who need regular transfusions. A shortage of donations will create problems in providing treatment to the poor patients,” Mr Khan said.

The Fatmid Foundation, having state of the art facilities for blood transfusion, provides 65 transfusions a day. There are some 1,900 thalassaemic patients registered with it and it provides transfusion to 600 patients on regular basis.

“To continue this, we need more donations but we are facing lack of funds,” Mr Khan said.