Sickle cell awareness campaign launched

NHS England has launched a new campaign to boost public awareness of Sickle Cell disorder, which disproportionately affects people from Black African and Caribbean background.

Launched on World Sickle Cell Day, the campaign, dubbed ‘Can you yell it’s sickle cell?’, is aimed at increasing awareness of the key signs and symptoms of sickle cell disorder among emergency care staff, carers and the wider public.

People with the disorder endure severe pain during a ‘sickle cell crisis’ that can occur multiple times per year, often requiring hospital admission so they can be given morphine to control the pain and prevent organ failure which can be fatal.

A new NHS training programme will aim to help staff better understand the condition, which affects up to 15,000 people in the UK.

Last year, the NHS struck a deal to roll out the first sickle cell treatment in 20 years. Crizanlizumab is expected to reduce the number of times a sickle cell patient needs to go to A&E by two fifths. It is delivered by a transfusion drip and works by binding to a protein in the blood cells to prevent the restriction of blood and oxygen supply that lead to a sickle cell crisis.

NHS England director of health inequalities Dr Bola Owolabi said:

“We know that sickle cell disease is a debilitating illness that thousands of people live with, but has historically been poorly understood, which is why the NHS is launching this brand new campaign and asking: ‘can you tell it’s sickle cell?’

“It is vital that we continue to tackle healthcare inequalities head on and this means improving care and experience of NHS services, access to the latest, cutting-edge treatments, and proactively raising awareness of conditions such as sickle cell disorder that disproportionately affect some of our communities.”

John James, CEO at Sickle Cell Society said:

“It is really great to see the first NHS national campaign for sickle cell disorder go live. Sickle cell disorder is a debilitating condition affecting individuals and families.

“We need to significantly raise awareness of this disorder. Only through increased awareness and education amongst health care professionals, and the general public, will we start to see improvement in patient experiences and ultimately their health outcomes”.