Is sickle cell anemia a racist disease?

I didn't have racist intent when I chuckled at that video. My classmates probably did not, either. But the tone set during that lesson on sickle cell may have affected how we all thought about the disease, and about our patients, for years to come. read more

It's World Sickle Cell Day. How much of the difference in access to care and research dollars for sickle cell disease is due to racism and economic differences, I wondered, especially framed now by the racial tensions fueled by the recent deaths of young African-Americans in Ferguson, Baltimore, Cleveland and the pool incident in McKinney. read more

Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a group of blood disorders typically inherited from a person's parents. The most common type is known as sickle cell anaemia (SCA). It results in an abnormality in the oxygen-carrying protein haemoglobin found in red blood cells. This leads to a rigid, sickle-like shape under certain circumstances. read more

Nurse Corean McClinton, left, talks about pain management with Sherry Webb at the Sickle Cell Disease Center in the Truman Medical Center, in Kansas City, Mo., in 2007. Dick Whipple/Associated Press When sickle cell patients arrive at emergency rooms, they often have difficulty getting proper treatment. read more