What is thalassemia?
Thalassemia (pronounced thal-uh-SEE-me-uh) is a genetic blood condition. It impairs your body’s capacity to generate normal hemoglobin. Hemoglobin is a protein that is found in red blood cells. It enables red blood cells to transfer oxygen throughout your body, nourishing other cells.
Your body generates fewer healthy hemoglobin proteins and your bone marrow creates fewer healthy red blood cells if you have thalassemia. Anemia is the condition of having fewer red blood cells. Because red blood cells are essential for supplying oxygen to tissues in your body, a lack of healthy red blood cells can deprive your body’s cells of the oxygen they require to produce energy and survive.