Listen to Story For more than a year, public sector hospitals nationwide, including those in Delhi, have been facing an acute shortage of Desferal, a life-saving iron chelator (used for removing excess iron from the body). This shortage is putting the lives of many thalassemia major patients at risk. Surprisingly, this drug is available in private chemist shops but remains out of reach for poor thalassemia patients who cannot afford its high cost .
Although various iron chelators are available for purchase, Desferal remains one of the most effective, especially for patients who cannot take oral drugs, as it has no substitute. The shortage of Desferal is forcing patients who require regular blood transfusions to live in life-threatening situations, as repeated transfusions cause iron overload. Iron overload is a leading cause of mortality among thalassemia major patients.
Some patients have ferritin levels as high as 8000 ng/ml, while the normal range is below 1000 ng/ml. In such cases, patients are prone to cardiac failure and other complications. Many thalassemia patients have complained about the drug’s unavailability.
“I need Desferal, but it’s not available in my ward at LHMC. Thalassemics India is currently donating Desferal to me,” said Govind, a thalassemia major patient. “We are facing the same Desferal shortage in Karnataka, and it’s been going on for years,” said Gagan Singh Chandhiok, a thalassemia patient and member of TPAG.
Some patients have ferrit.