BlackDoctor.org: How does sickle cell disease affect the body?
Devin: Sickle cell symptoms vary by individual, but can include headaches, dizziness, fatigue, chronic pain, just to name a few. More serious complications include things like seizures and strokes.1 Patients are also at risk for a condition known as iron overload, which is an excess of iron in the body, that can be very serious. Some patients with sickle cell are treated with occasional or frequent blood transfusions. The transfusions can help increase the amount of normal shaped cells and restore normal blood flow,2 but frequent transfusions can also cause iron to build up in different parts of the body, and cause iron overload.3
BlackDoctor.org: Does sickle cell disease affect African Americans more than anyone else?
Jason: Sickle cell is definitely more common in African Americans than in other groups, accounting for about 1 out of every 365 African Americans born in this country. To get a sense of this, by comparison, it only occurs in about 1 in 16,300 Hispanic-American births – so you can see it’s a big difference.4 Most patients with sickle cell are from African descent, but it also occurs in people throughout the Mediterranean, Middle East, parts of India, the Caribbean, and South and Central America.5
BlackDoctor.org: How can those with sickle cell disease control their iron levels?
Jason: I know from our work with the community that it’s really important that patients with sickle cell track their iron levels so that they don’t develop iron overload. All this takes is a simple blood test that could be done as part of a regular appointment. We learned – and want others to know – that iron overload starts to develop after only 10 to 20 transfusions.6 When extra iron builds up in the organs, it can cause all sorts of problems that can even be life-threatening.
That’s why it’s important that patients work closely with their doctors to monitor iron overload as a part of their overall game plan. So definitely make sure you’re keeping track of your transfusions, too.