A teenager from a suburb in Glasgow, Scotland will no longer require blood transfusions for a rare blood disorder, thanks to a stem cell transplant. Sunny Farid received a transplant of stem cells from her sister, which cured her of Thalassaemia — a dangerous blood disorder.
Before receiving the stem cell transplant, Sunny would have to spend a day in hospital every 3 weeks to receive blood transfusions. The transfusions were required to prevent Sunny’s blood count from falling to dangerously low levels.
Thalassaemia is an inherited blood disorder which causes a person to have lower-than normal levels of an oxygen-carrying protein called haemoglobin. It also results in a person having lower levels of red blood cells. The symptoms of Thalassaemia include weakness, paleness, slow growth, and fatigue. Severe forms of the condition are treated with regular blood transfusions.
Sunny said the condition was often very difficult to deal with. When she was younger, she didn’t understand why she was tired so often and the regular trips to hospital were difficult.
A stem cell transfusion can be used to replace the mutated blood-forming stem cells in a Thalassaemia sufferer’s body. The new stem cells will produce sufficient levels of haemoglobin and red blood cells.
The 18-year-old Sunny received a stem cell transplant using stem cells of her 5-year-old sister. It was a fairly quick procedure that was successful. Sunny is excited to no longer require regular blood transfusions and very grateful for the stem cell donation from her sister.
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