GAZA, (PIC)
The Gaza Health Ministry said thalassemia patients in the Gaza Strip are facing life-threatening conditions amid the collapse of the healthcare system and the continuing impact of the Israeli genocide, coinciding with World Thalassemia Day.
In a statement issued on Saturday, the ministry said patients are enduring a daily struggle for survival due to severe shortages of specialized medicines, limited laboratory testing supplies, and a deepening crisis in the availability of blood units required for treatment.
According to the ministry, 50 thalassemia patients out of a total of 334 have died since the start of the war, while 47 others have left Gaza in search of treatment, highlighting the deteriorating state of medical care in the besieged territory.
The ministry said 237 patients currently remain in Gaza, including 52 children under the age of 12 and 185 patients above 12, reflecting an ongoing health burden affecting multiple age groups.
Health officials warned that the destruction of laboratory infrastructure and the lack of diagnostic equipment have severely disrupted preventive screenings and treatment monitoring, raising fears that new cases could go undetected and undermining years of work aimed at limiting the spread of the disease.
The ministry called on international health organizations to urgently intensify their intervention efforts and focus on saving thalassemia patients in Gaza, warning that current conditions threaten both the lives of patients and future disease prevention efforts.
