Alpha Thalassemia Center - Vacaville, CAVacaville Hematologist Doctors for Alpha ThalassemiaType of Physician: Hematologist What is a Hematologist? A subspecialty certification by the Board of Internal Medicine or Pathology; Hematologists treat diseases of the blood, spleen, and lymph glands such as anemia, clotting disorders, sickle cell disease, hemophilia, leukemia, and lymphoma. They perform special types of transfusions and biopsy the bone marrow for analysis. Specialty: Hematology Common Name: Blood Doctor Hematologist Doctors in Vacaville * Epic Care  Epic Care  David A Pfister MD  UCSF Hematology & Oncology Clinic  Neelesh S Bangalore MD  Palo Alto Medical Clinic  Camino Medical Group Treatment Center  NorthCal Hematology Oncology Inc  NorthCal Hematology Oncology Inc  Sutter Gould Medical Foundation  John A Keech Jr. DO Vacaville, CaliforniaUpcoming Local Events2012-05-20
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Alpha and Beta ThalassemiaRead the Alpha and Beta Thalassemia article » What are thalassemias?Thalassemias (thal-a-SE-me-ahs) are inherited blood disorders. "Inherited" means they're passed on from parents to children through genes. Thalassemias cause the body to make fewer healthy red blood cells and less hemoglobin (HEE-muh-glow-bin) than normal. Hemoglobin is an iron-rich protein in red blood cells. It carries oxygen to all parts of the body. It also carries carbon dioxide (a waste gas) from the body to the lungs, where it's exhaled. People who have thalassemias can have mild or severe anemia (uh-NEE-me-uh). This condition is caused by a lower than normal number of red blood cells or not enough hemoglobin in the red blood cells.
What Causes Thalassemias?Your body makes three types of blood cells: red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets (PLATE-lets). Red blood cells contain hemoglobin, an iron-rich protein that carries oxygen from your lungs to all parts of your body. Hemoglobin also carries carbon dioxide (a waste gas) from your body to your lungs to be exhaled. Hemoglobin has two kinds of protein chains: alpha globin and beta globin. If your body doesn't make enough of these protein chains, red blood cells don't form properly and can't carry enough oxygen. Your body won't work well if your red blood cells don't make enough healthy hemoglobin. Genes control how the body makes hemoglobin protein chains. When these genes are missing or altered, thalassemias occur. Thalassemias are inherited disorders. That is, they're passed on from parents to their children through genes. People who get abnormal hemoglobin genes from one parent but normal genes from the other are called carriers. Carriers often have no signs of illness other than mild anemia. However, they can pass the abnormal genes on to their children. People with moderate to severe forms of thalassemia have inherited abnormal genes from... Recommended Reading Related to Alpha ThalassemiaHeart attack facts
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Nearby Vacaville Hospitals *VacaValley Hospital NorthBay Medical Center Telecare Solano Psychiatric Health Facility Napa State Hospital Queen of the Valley Medical Center Sutter Davis Hospital Sutter Solano Medical Center Kaiser Permanente Vallejo Medical Center St Helena Hospital Center for Behavioral Health Woodland Healthcare Contra Costa Regional Medical Center  John Muir Behavioral Health Center  VA Northern CA Healthcare System at Martinez  John Muir Medical Center Concord Campus  Sonoma Valley Hospital  Sutter Delta Medical Center  St Helena Hospital  John Muir Medical Center Walnut Creek Campus  Kaiser Permanente South Sacramento Medical Center  Kaiser Permanente Walnut Creek Medical Center  Methodist Hospital of Sacramento  Sierra Vista Hospital  Sutter General Hospital  Shriners Hospital Northern California  UC Davis Medical Center  Mercy General Hospital  Doctor's Medical Center San Pablo  Sutter Memorial Hospital  Sutter Center for Psychiatry Featured Articles*Provider Directory Terms of Use: The WebMD 'Provider Directory' is provided by WebMD for use by the general public as a quick reference of information about Providers. The Provider Directory is not intended as a tool for verifying the credentials, qualifications, or abilities of any Provider contained therein. Inclusion in the Provider Directory does not imply recommendation or endorsement nor does omission in the Provider Directory imply WebMD disapproval. |
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