World Thalassemia Day is observed every year on the 8th of May, to increase awareness about this devastating disease and also as a dedication to those, who lost their lives in this fight, young Pakistani couple Khushboo & Usman decided to change the norms by turning their wedding into a social cause.
The socially responsible couple from Karachi undergo a Thalassemia test before their wedding from two different places, namely Fatimid Foundation and Aga Khan University Hospital and this positive incentive was also ‘promoted’ on their wedding invitation so that more and more young people play their role in spreading awareness and in inspiring other to take the preventive measures!
Not only that, Khushboo and Usman also decided not to take any gifts or dowry on their wedding. They even donated their wedding dresses after the ceremony. The couple took this initiative through a privately owned NGO – KUMAK Pakistan.
Here is a snapshot of their wedding card in Urdu:
Thalassemia is an autosomal recessive blood disorders, which gets inherited from parents to the children through genes. It is a blood disorder that causes weakening and destruction of the red blood cells, affecting the formation of hemoglobin in the body, causing mild or severe anemia.
Around 50,000 to 100,000 patients are suffering from Thalassemia in Pakistan and every year 5,000 babies are born with this disease; 8 million of the population is Thalassemia carriers.
All it takes is a simple and inexpensive blood test to determine whether you are a carrier or not, efforts similar to those of Khushboo and Usman can save our coming generations from much pain & heartache!
