In observance of World Hemophilia Day today on April 17 and of National Hemophilia Awareness Month this April, stories like mine find the space and voice they deserve. This year’s theme, “Access for All: Women and Girls Bleed, Too,” cannot be more personal, more painful—or more powerful.

For the longest time, hemophilia has been known as “a man’s disease.” Textbooks, doctors, even the popular media have propagated the belief that only boys can have bleeding disorders and that women are merely carriers. But science and the lives of countless women have proven otherwise. It has taken the medical world decades to listen. Sometimes, the listening came too late.

As in the case of my mother, Sofia, who bled to death on the operating table. 

She had informed the doctors that she was a “bleeder,” a term we knew from family stories and hushed warnings. But the doctors dismissed her warning. “Women can’t be bleeders,” they said. 

And so my mother died—not from the operation itself, but from society’s refusal to believe that women, too, can suffer from hemophilia and other bleeding disorders. 

Years later, history almost repeated itself on my daughter, Star. At just three weeks old, she had a profuse nosebleed. Alarmed, I brought her to the hospital and explained our family history of bleeding. Again, I was met again with disbelief. “She’s a girl. She can’t have hemophilia,” the doctor said dismissively.  

What was worse was that at about the same time, Star’s male cousin was quickly diagnosed with severe hemophilia. No questions asked. No disbelief. No delay. Just the kind of medical attention my daughter, and my mother before her, were denied. 

That was the moment everything changed for me.

In 2016, patients and parents like myself formally established the Hemophilia Advocates-Philippines (HAP), a patient-led organization born from grief, frustration, and an unwavering desire for change. We were mothers, fathers, daughters, sons—united not just by blood, but also by the wounds inflicted by a broken system. 

What began as a humble group distributing donated factor concentrates from partners abroad, and with the generous support of Save One Life, soon expanded into something far greater. Over the years, HAP grew into a lifeline: offering financial aid, educational scholarships, livelihood support, and, perhaps most importantly, a community that listens, understands, and acts. 

We became a support system. A voice. A movement. 

And today, that voice grows louder, echoing through hospitals, policies, and homes. 

As we mark World Hemophilia Day and National Hemophilia Awareness Month, we also celebrate the lives we’ve saved, the battles we’ve fought, and the systemic change we’ve sparked. 

But the fight is far from over. 

We still hear stories of misdiagnosis, of women denied care, of mothers dying in silence, of young girls like Star growing up under medical systems still unwilling to fully embrace the truth: Women and girls bleed, too. 

This year’s theme is more than a slogan. It’s a demand. A recognition. A promise to every woman who has been told that her pain is not real and that her blood does not matter. 

So, we continue—with purpose, with passion, and with people behind us. 

To my mother, Sofia, your story fuels this journey. 

To my daughter, Star, your future will be brighter because of it. 

To every girl who is told, “You can’t possibly have hemophilia,” we believe you. 

Finally, the world is beginning to listen. 

Andrea H. Trinidad is the president of Hemophilia Advocates-Philippines. For more information about HAP and how to enlist, visit https://hemophilia.ph.