Hematology

Hematology (from the Greek word ‘haima’, meaning blood) is the branch of internal medicine that deals with the physiology, pathology, etiology, diagnosis, treatment, prognosis and prevention of blood-related disorders. Hematologists are trained to treat a wide variety of disease conditions ranging from anemia to blood cancer.

Some of the diseases treated by haematologists include:

• Anemia due to hematinic deficiencies – iron deficiency anaemia, megaloblastic anemia.
• Cancers of blood, lymphoid organs or bone marrow – leukemia, lymphoma, multiple myeloma, myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), myelofibrosis.
• Hemoglobinopathies – thalassemia, sickle cell anemia.
• Essential thrombocythemia or excess production of platelets.
• Polycythemia or excess production of red blood cells.
• Bleeding disorders – hemophilia, von Willebrand disease.
• Platelet disorders – immune thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP), Glanzmann’s thrombasthenia, Bernard Soulier syndrome.
• Clot formation within the body – deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, arterial thrombotic blocks, thrombophilia.
• Anticoagulation or blood thinning medications.
• Recurrent pregnancy loss due to antiphospholipid syndrome or deficiency of certain coagulation related proteins in the blood.
• Blood transfusion.
• Bone marrow stem cell transplantation.