Relation of anemia to outcome in thalassemia. (A) Regular transfusions increased the median survival in thalassemia major from less than 10 years in the 1960s to about 18 years in the 1970s with subsequent further significant improvement due to advances in management of iron overload.8,9 (B) Survival in patients with NTDT placed on regular transfusion is much better than patients with NTDT only occasionally transfused, with 12.5% of deaths from non-iron-related cardiomyopathy.3 (C) Number of morbidities in NTDT over 10 years is directly related to hemoglobin (Hb) level with the probability of multiple morbidities about 3 times higher at 9 g/dL than at 10 g/dL.4 (D) Morbidity-free survival is significantly better if the Hb is >10 g/dL.2
