I joined the Clinical Research Centre, Sarawak General Hospital in December 2012 as a Research Officer. I’m also a HBE Beta Thalassaemia patient. I was diagnosed with Thalassaemia at the age of 6 months old.

In 2016, I participated in the BELIEVE Trial (An Efficacy and Safety Study of Luspaterceot [ACE-536]Versus Placebo in Adults Who Require Regular Red Blood Cell Transfusions Due to Beta (β) Thalassaemia). The Principal Investigator of this trial is Dr Chew Lee Ping.

This is a Phase 3, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, multicenter study to determine the efficacy and safety of luspatercept (ACE-536) plus Best Supportive Care (BSC) versus placebo plus BSC in adults who require regular red blood cell transfusion due to (β)-thalassemia.

I used to transfuse 2 pints of packed cell every 4 weeks. When I joined this trial, I was transfused 1 pint every 3 weeks. This new drug eased the transfusion burden for thalassaemia patients and improve our quality of life at the same time.

When there is a new trial for Thalassaemia in Sarawak General Hospital, I always encourage other Thalassaemia patients to participate in the trial. It is a good opportunity for them to get potentially better treatment and at the same time contribute to improvement of Thalassaemia treatment and management.