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Create a 1 page page paper that discusses sickle cell anemia: types, symptoms.  .The sickle cells also tend to be sticky thus blocking blood vessels resulting in serious complications. The cel
Create a 1 page page paper that discusses sickle cell anemia: types, symptoms.  .The sickle cells also tend to be sticky thus blocking blood vessels resulting in serious complications. The cell sickling occurs as a result of the genetic mutation that results in the formation of abnormal hemoglobin known as hemoglobin S. The disorder shortens the life expectancy of patients with few living beyond the age of fifty.
The cure has been elusive and only methods for reducing the severity of the disorder such as taking penicillin and folic acid and the use of hydroxyurea for causative treatment of the disorder. Other management practices include blood transfusion therapy that raises the number of red blood cells in a patient. Bone marrow transplants in children have also been proven to significantly reduce the severity of the disorder (“Woman Cured of SCA” 6).
The stem cell transplant requires one to have a genetically-compatible and uninfected sibling. The donor is first given drugs that cause an increase in the number of stem cells in their blood. The donor’s blood is then taken and processed and then stored in sub-zero temperatures. At the time of the transplant, the blood is thawed and transfused in the patient ( Woman Cured of SCA 6). The transplant which is known as leukapheresis has been carried in at least 25 patients, 22 of whom have been completely cured. The therapy remains by far the most successful ever attempted to cure sickle-cell anemia.
