Sickle cell drive Saturday at mall
By From staff reports
Published in News on August 20, 2012 1:46 PM
September has been designated National Sickle Cell Awareness Month, and the Goldsboro Epicurean Civic Club will hold its annual Sickle Cell Drive on Saturday at Berkeley Mall to raise money for research to help find a cure for the disease.
Members of the club also will be soliciting donations from businesses, clubs and individuals in and around Goldsboro. Although donations are accepted at any time, the current drive will run through Sept. 30.
The goal for the drive is to raise $10,000, according to leaders of the club.
Saturday's event will run from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m.
Entertainment will be provided by the Goldsboro Ballet, the Interpretation Dancers, Set Apart Gospel Singers, the Continentals Community Children's Choir, the Twilight Singers, Felicia Leach, the Rev. Charles Franklin, pastor of Atkinson's Chapel Church, and Jazz with Trumpet One, featuring Roger Walker.
Sickle cell disease refers to a group of inherited red blood cell disorders. It is the most common genetic disease in the U.S. An estimated 70,000-80,000 Americans have sickle cell disease.
Sickle cell disease is not contagious. You inherit it from your parents.
Sickle cell disease affects people of many nationalities including Italians, Latin Americans, Greeks, Arabs, and Asiatic Indians.
However, it disproportionately affects people of African descent. All states now screen all newborns for sickle cell. In the U.S., approximately 1 out of 10-12 black people has the sickle cell trait, and 1 out of 400-500 black newborns has the disease.
Approximately 1 out of 1,000-1,400 Hispanic newborns has the disease.
A simple, painless blood test called the hemoglobin electrophoresis can be done by a doctor or local sickle cell foundation to test for the disease.