PIGI ZOIS: Pioneering with credibility

Annual transfusion requirements in Greece exceed 600000 blood units and nearly 20% of them are used for the transfusion of 3.000 patients with Thalassemia. Thalassemia patients need to be transfused properly at the right time and with safe, fresh blood. PIGI ZOIS is a nonprofit organization that tries to improve the lives of patients through providing proper voluntary blood units to patients and enhancing the Voluntary Blood Donation policy, in Thessaloniki area, which has 350 patients. The mission of PIGI ZOIS is to organize and manage almost 7.000 volunteers to donate their blood for the thalassemic patients. This is achieved by using a phone call reminder, so that the blood volunteer will donate his/her blood to a compatible young patient. All matches are done by a specialized computer program. PIGI ZOIS has donated 90.000 blood units over a period of twenty years. PIGI ZOIS also aims to raise awareness of Thalassemia through an educational program with children in primary schools, with the ultimate goal of encouraging the children to become donors when they reach adulthood. PIGI ZOIS also runs informative campaigns to the public about disease prevention and the general promotion of voluntary blood donation

A phase 3 study of deferasirox (ICL670), a once-daily oral iron chelator, in patients with beta-thalassemia.

Deferasirox (ICL670) is a once-daily oral iron chelator developed for the treatment of chronic iron overload from blood transfusions. A comparative phase 3 trial was conducted to demonstrate the efficacy of deferasirox in regularly transfused patients with beta-thalassemia aged 2 years or older. Patients were randomized and received treatment with deferasirox (n = 296) or deferoxamine (n = 290), with dosing of each according to baseline liver iron concentration (LIC). The primary endpoint was maintenance or reduction of LIC; secondary endpoints included safety and tolerability, change in serum ferritin level, and net body iron balance. In both arms, patients with LIC values of 7 mg Fe/g dry weight (dw) or higher had significant and similar dose-dependent reductions in LIC and serum ferritin, and effects on net body iron balance. However, the primary endpoint was not met in the overall population, possibly due to the fact that proportionally lower doses of deferasirox relative to deferoxamine were administered to patients with LIC values less than 7 mg Fe/g dw. The most common adverse events included rash, gastrointestinal disturbances, and mild nonprogressive increases in serum creatinine. No agranulocytosis, arthropathy, or growth failure was associated with deferasirox administration. Deferasirox is a promising once-daily oral therapy for the treatment of transfusional iron overload