Let's talk about the disease

Originally posted by: roshni101

Wow. I never knew Kunj's an african jo ussey b yehi disease de di.
Couldn't they give him some small disease which has a cure :/

Originally posted by: kusharberry

guys chill nah nothing will happen to kunj it might be wrong reports or may be someone else's so chill nah

Introduction

Sickle cell anaemia is a serious inherited blood disorder where the red blood cells, which carry oxygen around the body, develop abnormally.

The disorder mainly affects people of African, Caribbean, Middle Eastern, Eastern Mediterranean and Asian origin. In the UK, sickle cell disorders are most commonly seen in African and Caribbean people.

Normal red blood cells are flexible and disc-shaped, but in sickle cell anaemia they can can become rigid and shaped like a crescent (or sickle).

The sickle-shaped cells contain defective haemoglobin, the iron-rich protein that enables red blood cells to carry oxygen from your lungs to the rest of the body.

The abnormal cells are also unable to move around as easily as normal shaped cells and can block blood vessels, resulting in tissue and organ damage and episodes of severe pain.

Such episodes are known as a sickle cell crisis or a vaso-occlusive crisis. They can last from a few minutes to several months, although on average most last five to seven days.

The abnormal blood cells also have a shorter lifespan and aren't replaced as quickly as normal blood cells. This leads to a shortage of red blood cells, known as anaemia.

Symptoms of anaemia include lethargy (a lack of energy), tiredness and breathlessness, particularly after exercise.

Read more about the symptoms of sickle cell anaemia.

What causes sickle cell anaemia?

Sickle cell anaemia is caused by a mutation (an abnormal change) in the gene that instructs the body to produce haemoglobin.

The sickle cell gene is inherited (passed on between family members). To get sickle cell anaemia you have to inherit the defective gene from both parents.

If you only inherit the gene from one parent, you have what's known as the sickle cell trait. It's likely that your blood will contain some sickle cells, but you'll be able to produce normal haemoglobin and won't usually experience symptoms. However, you'll be a carrier of sickle cell anaemia and may pass the abnormal gene on to your children.

In England, about 250,000 people are thought to have the sickle cell trait, with those of African-Caribbean origin primarily affected.

If two people with the sickle cell trait have a child, there's a one in four chance that the child will be born with sickle cell anaemia.