{"id":4778,"date":"2026-05-09T15:45:00","date_gmt":"2026-05-09T12:45:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.tomanifesto.gr\/?p=4778"},"modified":"2026-05-09T15:45:00","modified_gmt":"2026-05-09T12:45:00","slug":"world-thalassaemia-day-2026-the-csfs-message-for-voluntary-blood-donation-and-the-4000-patients-video","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/en.tomanifesto.gr\/?p=4778","title":{"rendered":"World Thalassaemia Day 2026: the CSF’s message for voluntary blood donation and the 4,000 patients (video)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Focusing on the need for more regular volunteers, the president of ECEA, Elena Tsagari<\/strong>, was hosted on ERT’s “Early Early” show<\/strong>, with Kratero Katsoulis<\/strong> and Maria Iliaki<\/strong>, in the context of World Thalassaemia Day 2026<\/strong>. <\/p>\n

During her appearance on the show, she highlighted the importance of voluntary blood donation<\/strong> for about 4.000 our fellow citizens<\/strong> with thalassemia<\/strong>, who need blood on a regular basis so they can maintain good health and quality of life. <\/p>\n

She also stood by the changes that have been made in recent years at the National Blood Donation Centre<\/strong> to better manage blood and enhance safety for patients. <\/p>\n

“Blood sufficiency for thalassemia patients goes through increasing regular voluntary blood donation,” he said. <\/p>\n

At the same time, Ms Tsagari answered questions many citizens have about blood donation, attempting to debunk myths and misconceptions that often act as a deterrent. <\/p>\n

“Many of our fellow citizens unnecessarily exclude themselves from blood donation due to fear or false beliefs,” she noted. <\/p>\n

Particular emphasis was also placed on the importance of a steady supply of blood throughout the year. The ECEA<\/strong>, in cooperation with patient associations, encourages people to become regular blood donors by offering blood up to three times a year. <\/p>\n

What is Thalassemia <\/h3>\n

Thalassemia<\/strong> is a hereditary blood condition<\/strong> that affects the production of hemoglobin, the protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen around the body. <\/p>\n

What happens in thalassemia<\/h3>\n

In people with thalassemia: <\/p>\n

    \n
  • The body does not produce hemoglobin properly<\/li>\n
  • Red blood cells are destroyed more quickly<\/li>\n
  • Causes anemia<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    Types of thalassemia<\/h3>\n

    Thalassemia types exist: <\/p>\n

      \n
    • Mediterranean anaemia (beta-thalassaemia)<\/strong> – most common in Greece<\/li>\n
    • \u03b1-thalassemia<\/strong> – less common<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

      Severity varies: <\/p>\n

        \n
      • Mild form (vector)<\/strong>: usually without symptoms<\/li>\n
      • Moderate\/severe form<\/strong>: May need regular blood transfusions<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

        Symptoms (in the most severe forms) <\/h3>\n
          \n
        • Fatigue and weakness<\/li>\n
        • Longevity<\/li>\n
        • Developmental delay in children<\/li>\n
        • Spleen enlargement<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

          How it is transmitted<\/h3>\n
            \n
          • Not contagious <\/li>\n
          • Inherited from parents through genes<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

            Treatment <\/h3>\n

            Depending on the form: <\/p>\n

              \n
            • Tactical blood transfusions<\/li>\n
            • Drugs for iron removal<\/li>\n
            • In some cases, bone marrow transplantation<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

              As noted, systematic citizen participation can make a significant contribution to ensuring that there is enough blood for people who need it every day. <\/p>\n

              .<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

              \n Focusing on the need for more regular volunteer blood donors, the president of the HCEA, Elena Tsagari, was hosted on the show “Early …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4779,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4778","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-greece"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.tomanifesto.gr\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4778","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.tomanifesto.gr\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.tomanifesto.gr\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.tomanifesto.gr\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.tomanifesto.gr\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4778"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/en.tomanifesto.gr\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4778\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.tomanifesto.gr\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/4779"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.tomanifesto.gr\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4778"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.tomanifesto.gr\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4778"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.tomanifesto.gr\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4778"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}