The bruise you ignore: Why ITP awareness matters

September is ITP Awareness Month – an opportunity to shine a light on a rare condition that many of us may never have heard of, but which can have a profound impact on the people living with it. 

Most of us don’t think about platelets – until there are too few of them to help the blood stop bleeding. A bruise after bumping into a table. A nosebleed that takes a little longer to stop. Tiny reddish-purple spots appearing on the skin. An unusually heavy menstrual period.  

These signs can easily be dismissed. But for someone living with immune thrombocytopenia (ITP), they may signal something much more significant: the immune system mistakenly attacking platelets – the blood cells that help control bleeding. 

Living with the uncertainty of ITP 

ITP is rare, with an estimated two to five new cases diagnosed per 100,000 people each year. It can occur at any age, with incidence tending to peak in young children and again in older adults.¹ 

For people living with ITP, however, its impact cannot be understood through incidence figures alone.  A large French population study found that severe gastrointestinal or central nervous system bleeding was present at diagnosis in up to 1% of patients.²   

The possibility of bleeding – and the uncertainty of not always knowing when or how symptoms might appear can make ITP a persistent concern. 

For many patients, that uncertainty extends beyond the initial diagnosis. In the same study, around two-thirds of adults with primary ITP developed persistent or chronic disease. 

The connection to Octapharma 

Helping people manage ITP requires effective treatment options. This is where ITP connects with one of Octapharma’s core therapeutic areas: Immunotherapy. 

Human plasma contains immunoglobulins – antibodies that play a fundamental role in the immune system. Through plasma donation, scientific expertise, and highly controlled manufacturing, these proteins can be transformed into medicines used to treat people with immune deficiencies and autoimmune disorders. 

“IVIG is one of the established treatment approaches used in ITP, creating a direct connection between plasma donors, the medicines made from their donations, and the patients who need them,” explains Elisabeth Clodi, Global Vice President, Medical & Scientific Affairs. 

For Octapharma, this connection is also reflected in our longstanding experience with ITP.  

“We have an established connection with the ITP community, having conducted clinical trials in the past," says Raquel Álvarez-Ocaña, Global Brand Manager IBU Immunotherapy.  

Making a rare disease visible 

That connection is also what gives ITP Awareness Month its significance. It is not only an opportunity to explain a rare disease, but also to recognise the people living with it and the wider network of donors, scientists, healthcare professionals and patient communities working alongside them. 

 “So perhaps the question isn’t simply, ‘What is ITP?’ It’s ‘What does it take to help someone living with a rare disease have an ordinary day?’ Because sometimes, an ordinary day can mean everything,” says Katja Pachner, Senior Global Medical Advisor Immunotherapy.

ITP is one example of how our donors, our products, our science and the patients we serve are closely connected. And there are many more stories behind the products we work with every day.