Years of transfusions, however, led to severe iron overload that affected his heart and liver, making a stem cell transplant a particularly high-risk procedure. When Muhammad Shaheem, 17, from Karnataka was diagnosed with severe thalassemia at just five months old, regular blood transfusions became a part of his childhood.
After extensive preparation and counselling at the Sankalp-Bhagwan Mahavir Jain Hospital in Bengaluru, his family decided to proceed with the transplant. Though it was a difficult decision to make in my son’s case, it has ultimately given my son a second chance for better life without being troubled much by the disease. Mr. It shows how centres in resource-constrained settings can still achieve success in medicine and internationally recognised quality while keeping transplantation affordable and accessible.”
A possible way out came from within his own family when Shaheem’s younger sister, Zara, 7, was identified as a full Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA)-matched donor. Shaheem is among 1,000 children who have undergone paediatric stem cell transplants with help from Sankalp India Foundation, DKMS, and Cure2Children. The procedure is both risky and expensive, and the treatment cost in India ranges from ₹12 lakh to ₹40 lakh. Rajat Kumar Agarwal, president of Sankalp India Foundation, said, “For us, these 1,000 transplants are 1,000 beginnings and proof that cure can be made accessible when organisations combine their strengths with a shared purpose.
Their mother, Zareena, who lives with thalassemia major, said, “I continue to undergo treatment and regular blood transfusions.
