4. Alex's Story

4.3. Alex's story 4

Alex and her partner went to see the screening midwife. Alex had found out more information about her family. Her aunt, her mother’s sister, has a son who is being treated for beta-thalassaemia. Also, Alex’s partner says that he thought someone had a blood disorder in the family, but that is all he knows.

An understanding of how beta-thalassaemia is inherited and the relationships of people in the family can be used to work out whether someone is likely to be a carrier.

This information is drawn here as a family tree. On the right is a key to the symbols used.

family tree key

Beta-thalassaemia is an autosomal recessive condition and the next page explains this mode of inheritance.