Faces of GT

Meet some of the faces of Glanzmann Thrombasthenia from around the world

Eva Turek-Jewkes taking a selfie in front of Uluru.

Eva Turek-Jewkes

Statistically, GT affects one in one million people, making me one of twenty-five people in Australia who suffer from this disease. My medical opinion is that I’m out of options. Today, I wait patiently for a donor in the hope…

Two men named Patrick walking in a park with backpacks.

Patrick Muls

Belgium

Hey! I’m Patrick from Belgium. I was born in 1958. I was diagnosed with GT when I was still an infant. This has influenced my life ever since. No dangerous sports like football (soccer) or so. As the son of…

A woman in a black and white running top walking through tall grass.

Pauline Gauthier

France

Diagnosed with Glanzmann Thrombasthenia at Six Months Old My name is Pauline, and I was born in France in 1993, where I still live today. At six months old, I was diagnosed with Glanzmann Thrombasthenia (GT)—a rare platelet disorder that…

A woman in a blue and orange top standing in front of bushes.

Cassandra Peel

Tucson, Arizona

Hi, everyone! I’m Cassandra, and I am very thankful to have found such a fantastic community in the GT family. I was born and raised in Brooklyn, N, Y, where I was diagnosed with Glanzmann Thrombasthenia at Weill Cornell Medical…

A man with a beard and glasses is taking a selfie in front of a sign.

Md. Kaium Ali Jibon

Bangladesh

Hi, my name is Md. Kaium Ali, and my nickname is Jibon. I live in Bangladesh with my family. I noticed this website from the Facebook GT support group. I am not good at English, so if I make mistakes,…

Two individuals with glanzmann's thrombasthenia and their companion stand side by side.

Dan Beyer

Detroit, Michigan

Living with a Rare Bleeding Disorder My name is Daniel Beyer, but my friends call me Dan. I was diagnosed with Glanzmann Thrombasthenia (GT) as a child, a rare platelet disorder that prevents blood from clotting properly. For much of…

A woman with glanzmann's thrombasthenia holding up a drawing of a caricature.

Karen “Kaytee”

Louisiana

My story is long, but since I am one of the oldest diagnosed Glanzmann Thrombasthenia patients in the United States, I must be upfront that my history is not a nice one. I have learned that everyone’s life is not…

A woman with Glanzmann's Thrombasthenia wearing a blue dress.

Sherry Crutchfield

Fernandina Beach, Florida

Hi, my name is Sherry Crutchfield, my husband and I live in Fernandina Beach, FL. I aa 54 years old with GT. I have never known anyone but me with this disorder until I found this current site of Helen…

A woman with glasses holding a glass of wine.

Joy

I was born in 1944 and named for the great Joy that my parents were feeling. Five years earlier, they had lost their first son to what doctors put down as hemophilia. He died as a result of having undergone…

A white person icon on a green background representing glanzmann's thrombasthenia.

Denise Kurta

Near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

One day, I was on the Internet and came upon the GT website. When I looked at a group picture on the site, I gasped. I could tell who had GT from the tell-tale bruises they had. For the first…

A young girl with glanzmann's thrombasthenia is smiling while sitting on a couch.

Amelie Iavicoli

Amelie was born on November 13, 2012, at 11:12 in the evening. Aside from a couple of purplish spots on her chest, she weighed just over 7 pounds and was considered a healthy newborn. She established her personality from the…

A white person icon on a green background representing glanzmann's thrombasthenia.

Sandra Fox

Australia

MY GT JOURNEY. I am now 74 years old and living in Australia. This meant I had a long time, 64 years actually, till I was diagnosed with GT. Until the,n I was “just one of those women who bleed”….

A group of people sitting on a bench with a baby affected by glanzmann's thrombasthenia.

Peter Zdziarski

Holyoke, Massachusetts - pzdziarski@curegt.org

Glanzmann Thrombasthenia (GT) is a rare bleeding disorder that has shaped my life in many ways. I was diagnosed with Glanzmann Thrombasthenia at just eight months old. Over the years, I have learned how to navigate the challenges of this condition,…

A white person icon on a green background representing glanzmann's thrombasthenia.

Michela Golia

Hi, I’m a 51-year-old woman with Glanzmann thrombasthenia. I was diagnosed at 6, after the death of my older brother, who had the same condition as me but was mistaken for hemophilia. Relatively quiet childhood with various hematomas throughout the…

A young boy wearing an adidas t-shirt standing on a sidewalk at night with glanzmann's thrombasthenia.

Vincenzo

Naples, Italy

I am Anna, and this is the story of Vincenzo, a GT boy born on December 12, 2005, in Naples, Italy. At birth, after a long labor, Vincenzo was born with natural birth, without complications; he presented significant bruises on…

A woman in a black hijab is posing for a photo, embodying diversity and inclusion.

Yosra

My name is Yosra, but I’m known as Tanja in the Group. I’m 24 years old! I was diagnosed with Glanzmann’s when I was six months old. Since my illness is hereditary, my older cousin has the Glanzmann’s, so my…

A woman with glanzmann's thrombasthenia wearing ripped jeans and a white top.

Dezirya

Dezirya Merritt was born in Sept 2000 on her expected due date, and I was so happy I had finally gotten a girl. I had three boys prior. Well, the doctor noticed she was jaundiced and ordered the unique lamp…

A group of veterinarians in front of a truck, highlighting glanzmann's thrombasthenia.

Emily

Hello! I am Emily, a 25-year-old with Glanzmann Thrombasthenia. My journey with GT started when I was only a few hours old. I developed purple marks (later found to be bruises) all over my body. The doctors and nurses called…

Two women standing in front of a sign that says forever sisters, one of whom has Glanzmann's thrombasthenia.

Jyll

Toledo, Ohio

Hi, my name is Jyll, and I was born on March 24, 1973, in Toledo, Ohio. I was so glad to have found this website through Kaytee, one of my GT sisters because I’m not alone anymore! When I was…

A young girl posing for a photo.

Luísa

August 2006 was a month we were excited about. It would be the month of the birth of our first daughter, Luisa. After some complications and 14 hours of labor, Luisa came to this world through a C-section. She was…

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