Sickle-Cell Programming — An Imperiled Promise

Abstract

IT has taken some 60 years for sickle-cell anemia to command a level of interest, financing and programming commensurate with the magnitude of the problem. Unfortunately, undesirable features have accompanied most program implementation. Although a few isolated problems have been identified,^{1 2 3} there is a need to consider the negative aspects comprehensively because if they persist the current activity in the sickle-cell field may become more harmful than beneficial.The areas of concern are several. The first involves the identification of prevention as the goal of genetic counseling. The prevention approach is based on the unproved assumptions that sickle-cell anemia . . .