One Company’s Angola Sickle Cell Program

Abstract

Abstract Chevron Angola Sickle Cell Program Sickle cell disease is an inherited blood disorder characterized by misshapen red blood cells, susceptibility to infection, hemolytic anemia, sporadic blockage of blood vessels, and chronic organ damage. The sickle cell gene arose as a genetic selection against malaria. Currently all newborn infants in the United States are tested for sickle cell disease at birth as part of a national screening program, which allows prompt diagnosis, followed by early identification, and preventive care and treatment. About 3000 infants are diagnosed with sickle cell disease each year in the United States. In Africa, the problem of sickle cell disease is much greater, due to higher sickle gene prevalence. Newborn screening for sickle cell disease does not exist in most parts of Africa, and affected infants often die from infection or anemia. It is estimated that over 300,000 affected births occur annually, but 50–90% die before age 5 years. Sickle cell thus contributes substantially to the under-5 mortality in most sub-Saharan African countries. In Angola, for example, an estimated 12,000 babies are born with sickle cell diseases each year but most will die without a correct diagnosis. Angola has just one sixteenth the population of the United States, but at least four times the number of babies born each year with sickle cell disease. In March 2011, the Republic of Angola entered into a public-private partnership with Chevron and Baylor College of Medicine/Texas Children’s Hospital to develop a comprehensive sickle cell program.