American Society of Hematology

Milestones in Thalassemia

1925	Thomas Cooley is the first to describe thalassemia.
1938	Thalassemia is recognized as a genetic disease.
1948	Thalassemia is determined to be caused by an abnormal hemoglobin.
1964	The thalassemia mutation is found to protect against malaria.
1975	Treatment with regular blood transfusions begins to improve patient survival.
1977	Prenatal diagnosis for thalassemia becomes available.
1977	Richard Propper discovers that the iron toxicity caused by frequent blood transfusions can be eliminated with desferoxamine.
1982	Azacytidine is found to increase fetal hemoglobin in thalassemia patients.
1982	Bone marrow transplantation is first used to cure thalassemia.
1998	Oral chelators (such as deferiprone) are shown to be clinically beneficial for the treatment of iron toxicity.
2001	Specialized radiology imaging identifies iron toxicity in the heart.
2001	Hepcidin, a hormone that controls iron absorption in the intestines, is first discovered.
2003	Deferasirox, a new iron chelator, becomes available.
2007	Gene therapy is used for the first time in a patient with beta thalassemia, a more severe form of the disorder.

"Sickle Cell Disease and Thalassemia" by Elliot Vichinsky, MD, and these accompanying milestones were published in December 2008 as part of the special ASH anniversary brochure, 50 Years in Hematology: Research That Revolutionized Patient Care.