source: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services

year: 2021

Sickle cell disease (SCD), the most prevalent lifelong inherited blood disorder in the United States, causes the body to produce red blood cells shaped like crescents or sickles rather than discs. These sickle-shaped blood cells tend to stick to vessel walls leading to blockage and impeding blood flow. When this occurs, oxygen is not delivered to body tissues, which ultimately leads to severe acute and chronic pain episodes known as crises.

SCD impacts all racial and ethnic groups. Of the approximate 100,000 people affected by SCD in the United States, Black and Hispanic populations are disproportionately impacted. While medical advancements, such as newborn screening, penicillin prophylaxis and therapeutics have transitioned SCD from a fatal childhood disease to a chronic condition, long-term health complications (for example, stroke, acute chest syndrome, and chronic end-organ damage) have been associated with increased morbidity and mortality among people with SCD compared to those without.

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