Gov't called on to help hemophiliacs

CEBU - The Hemophilia Association of the Philippines Inc. is calling on the government to look at the plight of hemophiliacs and provide assistance in their medication. This as an international organization vowed to donate medicine for hemophilia to a Cebu City hospital.

Hemophiliacs are people suffering from hemophilia, a lifelong bleeding disorder that prevents blood from clotting properly. It is hereditary and non-curable. A person who has inherited the disorder from anyone in his family has no escape.

Hemophiliacs do not bleed faster than anyone else but bleeding may last longer. Danger lies in uncontrolled internal bleeding that starts spontaneously or results from injury.

Unfortunately, the country lacks the facilities and enough supply of medicine to treat this kind of chronic blood disorder said Laurie Kelley, founder of LA Kelley Communications, Inc., which is a provider of information materials about hemophilia.

Project Share which is also a program of LA Kelley Communications, Inc. will be donating medicines for hemophilia in the Hemophilia Center of Cebu located at Perpetual Soccour Hospital. 

Kelley added that lack of education among patients, doctors and the society is also one common problem that needs to be looked at.

Many in the country die of hemophilia without being diagnosed, said Andrea Echavez of Hemophilia Association of the Philippines for the Love and Service (HAPLOS). Echavez said this is due to people’s ignorance to the kind of disease and the lack of services hemophiliacs can avail for treatment.

Around the world, Kelley said that 400,000 of people in the world have hemophilia. Of these about 300,000 live in poverty and cannot afford the expensive medication.

Hemophilia is treated by replacing the missing clotting factor in the blood. This is done by injecting a product that contains the needed factor into a vein. Bleeding stops when enough clotting factor reaches the affected area.

Hemophiliacs are treated with Factor 7, 8, 9 and Feiba. A vial of 250 international units of these factors can cost around P2,000 to P3,000 while a bleeding patient is usually required to take two to three vials depending on the amount of factors needed to clot the blood.

Project Share Country Coordinator Donald Kill said they will give stocks of Factors 7, 8, 9 and Feiba for use of patients for free during emergencies. —Jessica Ann Pareja/BRP (THE FREEMAN)