Sickle Cell Disease news and research updates
Research readouts, treatment and access decisions, and community updates for people living with sickle cell disease and the people who care for them — each one dated, with a link to the original source where there is one.
189 articles match your filtersFree, no login required
Looking for earlier coverage? Browse the news archive.
$3M Breakthrough Prize honors duo whose work changed SCD treatment
One of the $3 million 2026 Breakthrough Prizes — in Life Sciences — has been awarded to two researchers whose discoveries reshaped the treatment of sickle cell disease (SCD). The…
Nigeria emerges as global epicentre of sickle cell cases in children — Study
Nigeria now bears the world’s highest burden of sickle cell disease among children, with more than 1.5 million cases recorded in those under 15, according to a new international…
Novo Nordisk preps filings for sickle cell drug etavopivat
Novo Nordisk is planning to move ahead with regulatory filings for etavopivat, potentially a first-in-class therapy for sickle cell disease, based on positive results in a phase 3…
Novo readies SCD drug from $1.1B Forma buyout for approval push after phase 3 win
Novo Nordisk is gearing up to submit its rare blood disorder drug to the FDA after the former Forma Therapeutics asset reduced a painful complication of sickle cell disease (SCD)…
Novo’s late-stage sickle cell win piles pressure on competitors
Novo Nordisk’s etavopivat elicited a 27% drop in vaso-occlusive crises and 48.7% hemoglobin response after 24 weeks, creating “separation amongst PK class candidates,” Truist…
AI Reveals Negative Labels in Medical Records for Sickle Cell Patients
WEDNESDAY, April 15, 2026 (HealthDay News) —For many patients with sickle cell disease, a trip to the emergency room has an unwanted side-effect: In their search for relief from…
Individuals Living with Sickle Cell Disease in Sub-Saharan Africa Face Substantial Barriers to Managing Their Condition
Patients in sub-Saharan Africa less likely to know details about their disease variant, use over-the-counter medications, and go to the hospital for pain crises (WASHINGTON — Apr…
Sub-Saharan Africa patients report far lower sickle cell medication use, survey finds
Individuals living with sickle cell disease in sub-Saharan Africa face disparities in treatment and health care access when compared with those in other low- and middle-income…
Bias in sickle cell care may be tied to opioid stigma, new study finds
Clinician bias toward people with sickle cell disease (SCD) may be tied to stigma around opioid use, rather than race or chronic pain alone, a new study suggests. “Although…
Michigan’s first commercially available sickle cell disease gene therapy patient: “A huge blessing,” says 24-year-old Southfield college student
Detroit – Southfield college student Chantez Sanford Jr. said he wasn’t scared to be the first patient in Michigan to receive a novel, new, commercially available gene therapy to…
Study identifies intersectional biases affecting care for sickle cell patients
In season 1, episode 2 of the popular show The Pitt, a Black woman with sickle cell disease arrives at the emergency department in acute pain, only to be initially dismissed as…
Brain development changes seen in children with sickle cell anemia
Children with sickle cell anemia (SCA), the most common and severe form of sickle cell disease (SCD), show signs of altered development in specific regions of the brain, even in…