Akron Children’s Hospital’s Showers Family Center for Childhood Cancer and Blood Disorders is hosting “Be a Lifesaver” on May 30, a health fair that will include sickle cell trait/disease testing, as well as the opportunity to donate blood and join the National Be The Match Bone Marrow Registry.
All activities are free and take place 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at United Baptist Church, 1007 S. Hawkins Ave. in West Akron.
“In this one event, we are hoping to build awareness, help people learn their health status regarding sickle cell and make it easy and convenient for everyone to help others, either by donating blood to our local American Red Cross or joining the national bone marrow registry,” said LaTonya Lewis, program director and outreach education coordinator for the Showers Center. “If you are enrolled in the bone marrow registry, you have the potential to save the life of someone affected by a disease like leukemia, sickle cell disease or lymphoma and that is an amazing thing.”
Sickle Cell Disease
Sickle cell anemia is a serious disorder in which the body makes sickle-shaped red blood cells. It is an inherited, lifelong disease.
Normal red blood cells are disc-shaped and look like doughnuts without holes in the center. They move easily through the blood vessels. Sickle cells are stiff and sticky. They tend to block blood flow in the blood vessels of the limbs and organs, causing pain and organ damage, and raising the risk for infection.
Sickle cell anemia is most common in people whose families come from Africa, South or Central America, Caribbean islands, Mediterranean countries (such as Turkey, Greece, and Italy), India, and Saudi Arabia.
In the United States, the disease occurs in about 1 out of every 500 African American births.
More than 2 million Americans have sickle cell trait. The condition occurs in about 1 in 12 African Americans. Carrying the sickle cell trait is not the same as having sickle cell anemia but it is important to know if you carry the trait. Getting tested is as simple as a finger prick.
“It’s becoming mandatory for college athletes, and in some cases, high school athletes, to undergo testing and be able to document if they have sickle cell trait,” said Lewis. “In extremely rare cases, athletes who carry the trait and train hard, and especially in hot weather, can have a health emergency called exertional sickling.”
Be The Match
Joining the Be The Match Registry, which requires nothing more than paperwork and a swab of the cheek, means you could be called upon to become a bone marrow donor for someone facing a life-threatening illness.
Be The Match is especially in need of diverse donors because you are most likely to match someone of your own race and ethnicity. You must be between the ages of 18 and 44 to join because research shows younger donors provide the greatest chance for transplant success.
“We have an especially strong need for donors in certain racial and ethnic groups,” said Lewis. “For example, while a white patient has a 97 percent likelihood of finding a bone marrow match, an African American patient only has a 76 percent likelihood of a match.”
Regional Sickle Cell Center
Akron Children’s Hospital is one of Ohio’s six regional sickle cell centers, providing coordinated care to children, adolescents and young adults with sickle cell disease and related disorders. The program is funded by the Ohio Department of Health and Akron Children’s.
Newborn screenings are used to identify more than 500 children with sickle cell trait and other hemoglobinopathies in northeast Ohio each year. Testing is available for local patients as well as for patients referred from other communities in Ohio Region VI.
In addition to medical care, the center offers support services including disease education, genetic and psychosocial counseling, and educational services for the community at large, at risk groups and health care providers.
