Kerala: 9-year-old cancer patient found HIV+ after blood transfusion

A 9-year-old Keralite girl, who is diagnosed with blood cancer, has tested positive for HIV allegedly after undergoing a blood transfusion. 

The girl was being treated at the Government Medical College Hospital in Alappuzha, from where she was referred to the Regional Cancer Centre (RCC) in Thiruvananthapuram. 

Noticing swelling in one of her eyes, the RCC doctors carried out various tests, including a blood test, which revealed she was HIV positive, the police said. 

The girl's father, in his complaint, said that she contracted the disease after a blood transfusion, though the police said it's not been confirmed and they are still investigating how she got infected. 

Meanwhile, state health minister KK Shylaja has sought an immediate report from the RCC director on the matter.

(With agency inputs)

• HIV
• Blood transfusion
• Blood cancer