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Overcoming the Complications for Thalassemia with Successful Bone Marrow Transplant

Bone Marrow Transplant for Thalassemia - Dr. Vikas Dua

Life can be a big struggle, but that is not how things will always be. There will eventually come a time when the bright beams of sunlight cut through the darkness and bring respite and happiness in your life. That is exactly what happened to us. Thalassemia can be a life-threatening medical condition and we didn’t even know about it until our son was diagnosed with it. We thought that he would have to continue leading a life with regular blood transfusion and weren’t sure what may happen to him. But all that changed for better after his bone marrow transplant for thalassemia.

If you are concerned about who I am and why I am telling you this, this story is for anyone who has a loved one suffering from thalassemia. I would like to share my story, more so the story of my son Tom and his successful bone marrow transplant and his path to leading a healthy and safe life after overcoming thalassemia. I am Peter from Argentina.

My son was diagnosed with thalassemia from an early age. The first time we learned about it was when he began showing pale or yellowish skin, remained tired most of the time, and had dark urine. He was around 2 years old at the time. What followed was a life that required him to get blood transfusion every month. Without it, he would not be able to maintain his hemoglobin levels. Besides, he needed frequent chelation therapy to prevent the buildup of iron in his body. This continued up to when he became 12 years old. Despite a decade of this mode of lifestyle, my son’s doctor told us that he needed a bone marrow transplant if he was to be given any chance of surviving. We had borne the pain along with him for so long and even after so much of care and treatment, it was heartbreaking to know that he had a bleak future. The doctor told us that it was like a now or never situation.

We asked him if there was no other treatment option. He said your son’s condition has deteriorated over the years. Blood transfusion was a way of only sustaining his blood’s hemoglobin and oxygen levels. It was never a treatment solution. Bone marrow transplantation was the only way to treat the condition and save my son’s life. But the doctor also had some graver things to tell us. He said that bone marrow transplant itself comes with certain complications after the procedure. So it is important that we choose the best specialist for the procedure. It was also required to find a matching bone marrow donor for my son. All this made us feel even worse for our son. He recommended us to see a specialist in bone marrow transplant.

We visited this specialist who evaluated my son’s reports. She told us that a bone marrow donor will be required for my son. She recommended getting my daughter, who was elder to my son, tested to be a candidate. We were initially surprised, but the doctor told us that siblings are usually the best candidates for bone marrow transplantation. She also understood our concern about our daughter and said that there was no harm to your daughter if she became the donor. A series of tests were run on my daughter and the doctor after a few days that she was a matching donor. This meant that we didn’t have to search for and wait for another matching donor, which was a very difficult and long process.

After running all the reports, she discussed the details about the procedure, the potential expenses, and the need for high-quality treatment and care. After discussing all these points, she told us that the best course will be to undergo the procedure in India where the costs were minimal while the quality of treatment provided was unmatched. This was another big set back for us because it meant that the risk of getting the transplant in our own country was very high. We had never left South America ever. But given the details about the expenses and complications about the procedure, my wife was adamant about taking our son to India for the procedure.

We didn’t have any relatives in or near India, so I didn’t know where to start from. So I took to the internet and began searching for doctors and hospitals for bone marrow transplant for thalassemia in India. I came across many names, but I found India Organ transplant- a group of surgeons and hospitals that seemed to be of most help. They seemed to be providing all kinds of help for making it possible for thalassemia patients to seek a Successful Bone marrow transplant for Thalassemia in India. I called them and my call was received by a pleasant sounding female voice. I told her about my son’s condition and the need for bone marrow transplant in the shortest possible time. She listened to me for almost half an hour and then said you have called in the right place.

Then I asked her how she can help us and whether there was some alternative treatment for my son. She told me the following:

• We will help you find the specialist of Bone Marrow Transplant for Thalassemia in India.
• We will also help arrange the medical visa for your son and those accompanying him to India.
• And you will also find us taking care of all your local transportation. There will always be someone to take you to and from your hotel room and the local medical facilities and testing centers.

Regarding alternative treatment options, we will have to confirm about it from our specialists. She asked me to send my son’s reports to her, which I did. She told me that she would call me after two days and said that she would be my coordinator from now on and will be in contact with us.

I received a call from the coordinator exactly on the second day after my first call. She told me that my son’s reports were presented to 4 Best medical Oncologists in India for thalassemia. All of them have confirmed that a bone marrow transplant is the only treatment option currently available for your son. They also said that my daughter’s bone marrow was a perfect match. She also said that all the doctors claimed that the procedure needs to be done at the earliest. This gave me a strange feeling in the gut.

I still had many questions coming to my mind, and I asked her the following ones:

• How do I choose the best specialist for my son?
• What are the risks after the procedure?
• What if any complications arise?

To these questions, the India Organ transplant- a group of surgeons and hospitals coordinatorres ponded with the following answers:

• We have a list of Best medical Oncologists in India who are not just the best in India, but among the top in the world. They have studied, trained, and practiced from the best medical universities and institutions in the world.
• Hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) is the name of the treatment, and these specialists are adept at taking precautions for any risks.
• As already mentioned, HCT specialists have completed hundreds of procedures and have handled them with success.

This gave me some peace of mind. I told her that I will confirm about my decision the next day. I had a long discussion with my wife. We took stock of our finances and eventually decided to make the journey to India. I didn’t want to take any risks with the quality of the medical facilities available in my country. So I called the coordinator and confirmed about our decision to come to India for the transplantation. She told me you have made the right decision towards the treatment of your son. We will not give you any reason to complain. She sent me a list and details of all the 4 specialists and asked me to confirm which HCT specialistwas preferred by us.

It took us one more day to check the details of the different doctors. We found Dr. Vikas Dua top medical oncologist in India to be the preferred choice. He seemed to have the most experience and multiple qualifications from institutions located almost all around the world. We confirmed this to the India Organ transplant coordinator and after a couple of days, she gave us the appointment date in May of 2017. My son Tom, my daughter, me and my wife travelled to India. Our medical visas were all arranged by the India Organ transplant group and we didn’t have to worry about anything. It was a completely smooth process.

Even when we landed in India, we didn’t have to do anything for our local travels. We were escorted from the airport to the hotel by a professionally dressed and pleasant-sounding man. He accompanied us throughout our stay in India, taking us on all our appointments. Once we landed, the coordinator called me to enquire about our journey. She told us to rest and be ready for the appointment the next morning.

The next day, we arrived at the facility of Dr. Vikas Dua in Top Hospitals in India. When I saw him, I found him to be of a pleasing personality. He is so soft-spoken and made all of us feel comfortable. So the first time I met him, I had lots of questions to ask him. The best thing was that he was so pleasant and had all the patience in the world to answer our questions. Some of the questions we asked him included the following:

• Are there any risks related to bone marrow transplant? I had heard of some from a few doctors in my country.
• How long will the procedure take to complete?

There were even more questions that I don’t remember. He answered these questions calmly.

• Traditionally, the organs have been at risk of complications after a transfusion. It is because of the body’s reaction to the procedure. But you shouldn’t have to worry about it. Firstly, we have a perfectly matching donor in your daughter. Secondly, we have a world-class team of specialists who will monitor and take care of your son during and after the procedure.You should also know that we have a 100% success rate and we have effectively overcome any complications in our patients during all our years of practice. The only complications you should expect include headache, fever, chills or nausea.
• The first stage of the procedure should take one day to complete. It will take 1 to 2 hours to collect the donor cells from your daughter and 2 to 4 hours to place in your son’s bone marrow. The procedures take less time, but the conditioning in between can increase the time. After the conditioning, it can take 2 days to transplant the new stem cells. Your son will be under monitoring for a few days before we can decide when to discharge him.

After the consultation, he needed some tests to run on both my son and daughter. The results would be received the next day and the doctor required us to come the day after to get my son admitted. The next day, the India Organ transplant coordinator called me and shared information about the report. She asked us to arrive the next day at the HMT center for preparation. The next day, we arrived at the center and my son was admitted to a well-appointed and furnished room. Dr. Dua came and asked me to accompany him for further discussion. He told me that it was important to provide details of the whole procedure to me. He said this is going to be an allogeneic transplant because the cells will be taken from a donor. There are 3 steps involved in the procedure. This includes:

• Collection of stem cells from the donor
• Conditioning the patient’s body, which means getting the body ready for receiving the cells
• Adding the cells to the body

We will be collecting healthy stem cells from your daughter’s hip bone. There will be general anesthesia. It involves the use of needle and the procedure can take 1 to 2 hours. There will be dressing over the area that remains only for 24 hours. She will also be under monitoring after the procedure. There is no need to worry about the donor. She will also make some red blood cells from her, which will be given back using an IV. Next, we will perform the conditioning. This is done to make space for new stem cells in the bone marrow and to control the immune system. After 2 days, we will complete the transplant. It is done through a thin tube connected to the vein. This process takes just 2 hours to complete and your son will be conscious.

Now that I knew about the procedure, most of my worries were gone. The next day the procedure began and there was a large team of specialists that were involved. The procedure was completed after 5 days and my son was kept under monitoring. All the nurses and other specialists were so courteous towards us. My daughter was up and walking a day after the cells were taken from her bone marrow. Once all the steps of the transplantation were complete, Dr. Dua told me that everything worked fine and there was no reason for us to worry.

My son was kept in a special room to prevent any infections. We could meet him only by wearing gloves and masks and only for a limited time per day. There were regular tests, blood transfusions, and medications to prevent side effects, control the immune system, and fight infections. My son spent many days in special care before the doctor said that his body started producing blood cells normally just like anyone else. He told us that the procedure was a success and it was time for us to forget about the worries. This was the best news we had in a long time. The coordinator at India Organ transplant also reached us and said that the treatment was a success. We stayed at the facility for a couple more weeks before Dr. Dua told us that we could plan our return.

Before we left, I had a long discussion with Dr. Dua. He told us about the future course and what we can expect. He said you should visit the previous doctor your son had been seeing. He wrote a note that needed to be given to our doctor back in Argentina. In fact, he also gave me his contact number and told me to get our doctor in contact with him once we return. He also asked to see my wife and told us about all the precautions and concerns for the first few months. We met and thanked all the staff of the facility that was involved in my son’s treatment and care.

Next, I had a long discussion with the India Organ transplant coordinator. I thanked her for all the support and guidance for my son that resulted in the Successful Bone marrow transplant for Thalassemia in India. She also asked me to contact her in case of any problems after returning to our country. Once we returned to Argentina, we visited our earlier doctor. He was amazed by the outcome of the transplantation. He checked the note from Dr. Dua and all the reports. He also called him and had a good discussion with him. This was followed by regular visits to the doctor. There were some early medications that were significantly reduced later on.

Gradually, my son began engaging in activities including mild sports. It has been more than a year now, and Tom is a healthy young lad. We are all proud to see him grow into a healthy teen. His thalassemia has gone and he no longer needs a blood transfusion. Our doctor said that we should treat this as a miracle because such transplantations in our country carried a lot of risks. He said that he would also recommend other patients to India. I told him about India Organ transplant- a group of surgeons and hospitals and how they helped us in every way.

When our doctor had given the ultimatum to us about our son’s condition, we thought it was the end of the world for us. But once we found India Organ transplant- a group of surgeons and hospitals, everything changed. It was a good experience from the very beginning. I am also thankful for finding such an experienced and accomplished HMT specialist in the form of Dr. Dua. I would like to thank everyone including the staff that took care of me during his procedure and recovery.

Bone marrow, a simple terminology, but goes way beyond our imagination when it comes to complexities and surgery. You and I cannot even think how complex the surgery is and how much precision, courage, and expertise is required for the same. But thanks to the entire team who make the entire process smooth and satisfying. Just can’t thank you enough Team India Organ transplant- a group of surgeons and hospitals!

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