What Is Sickle-Cell Anemia?
Sickle-cell anemia (also sickle-cell disease) is a disease that afflicts millions of people around the world, particularly those living in central and western Africa where between 10 and 40 percent of the population is affected. Because the disease is most prevalent in Africa, people with African heritage worldwide are more likely to have the disease. Individuals with sickle-cell anemia have blood cells that are more like sickles in shape, as opposed to normal, round blood cells. These pointed red blood cells do not travel through the blood vessels as easily and can cause damage, or stick in capillaries and initiate clots. Because the red blood cells are abnormally shaped, they do not contain as much hemoglobin, which is the molecule responsible for carrying oxygen from the lungs to tissues throughout the body. How Is Sickle-Cell Transmitted? Sickle-cell anemia is not contagious, so it cannot be transmitted from person to person via contact. It is a genetic disorder, so individuals wit
