Main Entry: thal·as·se·mia

Variant(s): or British thal·as·sae·mia \ˌthal-ə-ˈsē-mē-ə\

Function: noun

: any of a group of inherited hypochromic anemias and especially Cooley's anemia controlled by a series of allelic genes that cause reduction in or failure of synthesis of one of the globin chains making up hemoglobin and that tend to occur especially in individuals of Mediterranean, African, or southeastern Asian ancestry—sometimes used with a prefix (as alpha-, beta-, or delta-) to indicate the hemoglobin chain affected; called also Mediterranean anemia; see beta-thalassemia