About Us

Sickle Cell Facts

Events

Walk

Links

Donna T Darrien Memorial Foundation for Sickle Cell

Sickle Cell Facts

• Sickle cell disease is an inherited condition that can cause many health problems. Sickle cell anemia is the most common type of sickle cell disease. Other types are hemoglobin SC disease, hemoglobin S/beta-plus thalassemia.

• More than 60,000 Americans, mostly African American, have sickle cell disease, and about two thirds of these have sickle cell anemia.

• About 1,000 American babies are born with sickle cell disease every year.

• The disease is a global health problem. It occurs in Africa, all of the countries surrounding the Mediterranean Sea, several Middle East countries, Canada, all the Caribbean Islands, many South American countries, and in France, Belgium, and the United Kingdom.

• If you have the sickle cell trait, you have the gene for sickle cell disease. You do not have the disease and there are no health problems associated with the sickle cell trait.

• Over 2.5 million Americans, mostly African-Americans, have sickle cell trait, and if both parents have the sickle cell trait, they can have children with the sickle cell disease.

Created by members of the DTD Foundation