Get Help Through Sickle Cell Charities

By Lela Perkins


Finding out one's child has been born with an incurable disease can leave many parents searching for someone who can help them understand and cope with their situation. Many Sickle Cell charities are set up to provide services to to those faced with this disorder and their loved ones. They can offer support from as early as birth, right on through the duration of a person's life.

Each of these organization provide services directly related to this condition. Some are geared toward specific needs while other are set up to cover a wide range of needs. Certain groups concentrate on providing education to patients, families, medical facilities and even the public, and others may lean more towards helping with medications and treatments or support programs.

A autosomal recessive trait disease, Sickle Cell is genetic and can only be inherited if both parents are carriers and transfer the affected gene to their child. This is a serious blood disorder affecting the red cells and the flow of oxygen to the body, resulting in pain, anemia and other issues. People who have ancestors from Middle Eastern, Mediterranean, Indian, African or some Latin American countries run a higher risk of carrying this trait and passing it on to their offspring.

Only specific tests can determine whether or not a person has been born with this disease. As a matter of standard procedure, most hospitals do blood workups on newborns within the first 48 hours of life. Many folks with high risk ancestry often choose to undergo genetic testing before or during early pregnancy to find out their chances of producing a child with Sickle Cell.

This is not a disease that someone comes down with, one must be born with it. Though there is no permanent cure at this time, there medications and routines that can help manage and treat the various symptoms. This extremely serious condition is most commonly characterized by severe anemia, episodes of intense pain, infections, ulcers and damage to bones and organs.

The various organizations set up regarding this condition are there to assist the patients with everything from finding doctors to getting tested and funding medications if necessary. Certain groups will help advise individuals on the recommended follow up treatments and help find hematologists and oncologists that specialize specifically in this disease. Some may also provide temporary housing for the families of those who are having to undergo care at hospitals.

There are organizations that raise funds primarily for the purpose of financing research facilities or helping advocates, nurses and physicians gain more credits of study in the area of this disease. Some are geared more towards improving the life quality of those suffering from the condition in various ways including providing college scholarships. There are many more ways in which they lend assistance as well.

The most common way the public receives information on this disease is through Sickle Cell charities. The educational packets they provide at various medical health facilities, as well as the conventions and seminars they sponsor are instrumental in teaching people how to understand and treat this condition. Through counseling and advocacy services, they are working hard to dispel the stigma and misconceptions often attributed to this affliction.




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