World Thalassemia Day is celebrated every year on May 8th to commemorate Thalassemia victims and to encourage those who struggle to live with the disease. 

Thalassemia is a blood disorder passed down through families (inherited) in which the body makes an abnormal form or inadequate amount of hemoglobin. Hemoglobin is the protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen. The disorder results in large numbers of red blood cells being destroyed, which leads to anemia.