Sickle cell disease or SCD is a condition that affects your red blood cells — the cells that carry oxygen around your body. It causes these cells to become misshapen, making it harder for them to function normally.
In the past, sickle cell disease has been much more uncommon in South Africa than in many other African countries. However, this condition has been diagnosed more often in recent years, especially as more people move to South Africa from other areas where it is more common.
Symptoms caused by sickle cell disease include:
When sickle cell disease becomes severe, it is called sickle cell anaemia. Anaemia, which occurs when red blood cell levels drop too low, can lead to dizziness, breathing problems, pale skin, or irregular heartbeats.
Sickle cell disease can also lead to serious health problems called complications. If you have this disease, you are more likely to experience a stroke, kidney problems, liver disease, eye problems, and blood clots. You are also at risk for acute chest syndrome, a serious condition in which the blood vessels in your lungs become clogged, leading to coughing, chest pain, and fever.
Sickle cell disease is caused by changes in your genes. It occurs when you receive copies of abnormal genes from each of your parents.
These gene changes lead to problems with haemoglobin, the protein inside red blood cells that helps carry oxygen. While healthy red blood cells are smooth and round, the abnormal haemoglobin in sickle cells causes the cells to become sticky and C-shaped. The affected cells also die sooner than they should, leading to low levels of red blood cells.
These unusually-shaped sickle cells can also get stuck within your blood vessels, which causes many of the symptoms seen in this disease.
Most sickle cell disease treatments aim to prevent or relieve symptoms such as pain. Painkillers may help keep your symptoms under control, although sometimes you may need to go to the hospital to treat severe pain.
Doctors often recommend that children with sickle cell disease take daily antibiotics to help prevent infections. Blood transfusions (receiving new blood cells from a donor) can also help prevent or treat problems related to sickle cell disease. Additionally, other medications can improve the shape of red blood cells or reduce the risk of complications.
You can prevent sickle cell disease complications with lifestyle changes like:
The only treatment that has the chance of curing sickle cell disease is a stem cell transplant, sometimes called a bone marrow transplant. Bone marrow cells make new blood cells, including red blood cells, so replacing your bone marrow with cells from a healthy donor can help your body make new, healthy red blood cells. Stem cell transplants can help treat very severe sickle cell disease but also come with serious risks.
Talk to your doctor to determine which type of treatment may be most helpful for you.