Alecia Nero, MD

A hematology specialist at UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dr. Nero cares for patients with non-malignant (non-cancerous) blood and bone-marrow conditions that include sickle cell disease, abnormal blood counts and a range of anemias and platelet disorders, including thrombocythemia. Dr. Nero also leads UT Southwestern’s pioneering Transition Sickle Cell Program, which educates adolescents with sickle cell disease about their condition, teaches them to manage their own health, prepares them for the adult medical system to which they transition at age 18, and helps them develop relationships with the post-transition providers who will care for them.

Dr. Nero also counsels sickle cell disease patients, both before and after they are sexually active, about the implications of having this inherited disease when they start families. Because the patients, depending on their mate’s carrier status, are at a risk of having a child with sickle cell disease, she welcomes her patients to invite their partners to participate in this discussion during clinic visits so they can make informed choices as a couple. Dr. Nero tries to educate patients, not make choices for them and prepare them for what they need to know when they’re making decisions that affect their health.