Many women in Africa who suffer from sickle-cell anemia go to Lagos University Teaching Hospital to receive help and advice from Dr. Bosede Afolabi. Afolabi studies the deadly disease and how it affects pregnant women and their babies. Sickle-cell anemia is extremely common in Nigeria. Around one in four people in West Africa carry the sickle cell gene. When someone has this disease, their irregularly shaped cells can slow or block blood flow and oxygen to parts of the body. This causes people with sickle-cell disease to have a very low life expectancy.
Vladimir Duthiers wrote this article for CNN on February 11th. Before reading this article I had heard of sickle-cell anemia in biology class, but I didn't know that the disease is most common in Nigeria. This article was written to inform people that this is a serious issue and to tell the story of Dr. Bosede Afolabi. I think that what Dr. Bosede Afolabi is doing is great, and I'm glad someone is helping the women and children who suffer from this deadly disease.
http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/11/world/africa/bosede-afolabi-sickle-cell-anemia/index.html
This is very sad that one in four people carry this disease in Nigeria. I hope the doctor can find a cure to help the women and children of Nigeria.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, we need to start with clean water first...
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