KARACHI, Sept 14: A two-year-old boy became the youngest bone marrow transplant patient at the Aga Khan University Hospital. The boy was suffering from Thalassemia Major, a disease that previously required the affected patient to have a blood transfusion every month. The family came to Karachi from Kuwait, especially for the treatment and were delighted that a matching donor was found in the person of his three-year-old sister.

Five to six per cent of the population are estimated to be carriers of thalassemia gene, and around 5,000 babies born in Pakistan carry the gene. The only curative treatment for this disorder is Bone Marrow Transplant (BMT).

The Bone Marrow Transplant unit at the Aga Khan University Hospital, inaugurated in 2004, has modern equipment and over 40 bone marrow transplantations have been successfully carried out.

The bone marrow transplantation team has expressed its satisfaction over the young patient's progress, saying that no significant complication has been seen at any time in the pre to post-operation period.—PPI