Relief has come to the patients of sickle cell anemia, as the wife of Abia State Governor, Mrs. Nkechi Ikpeazu, intensifies efforts in advocacy to eradicate the disease and pressuring Abia government to enforce the genotype law as passed by the State’s House of Assembly prohibiting couples who did not identify their genotype from getting married. Mrs. Ikpeazu, who led the Vicar Hope Foundation in collaboration with Neu Dyx Global Investment USA Incorporated, Jemisun USA Incorporated, in a rally within Aba metropolis, terminating at the Aba General Hospital to mark this year sickle cell day stated that the only solution to end the cycle is getting couples tested before they get married. According to her, “there is no cure for this disease now but we can manage and care for those already affected by the disease, that is why we established two centres in Umuahia and Aba areas of the state to care for patients but our dream is to establish it in every local area of the state and ultimately eradicate the disease”. The Governor’s wife called on all to join in the fight against the disease, in order to end the pain and emotional trauma sufferers pass through as well as ease the economic burden of this disease to families. Chairman on the occasion and the Chief Executive Officer, Aba General Hospital, Dr. Ijeoma Nduka, said that for us to win the war against this disease means that we should increase in advocacy, adding that the choice to end sickle cell is in our hands by being tested before getting married. Also in his address, the Medical Director of Vicar Hope Foundation and Representative of Neu Dyx Global Investment, USA Incorporated, Dr. Chukwuemeka Nwakanma, said that what we are doing today is to raise the awareness level of the disease, care for those already affected and to end the cycle. According to him, “the World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates that over 3000, children born yearly has this disease and from statistics Nigeria, has the highest number (150,000) in the world”. Dr. Nwakanma, maintains that this genetics disorder account for 8% of infant mortality deaths, that is why VHF is aggressive to end this disease. Meanwhile, a survivor and founder Ify-Joes Foundation, Miss. Josephine Osondu, in her keynote testimony stated that though it is a blood disorder inherited through parenting that comes with a lot of crisis, stigma and other challenges but maintained that if we avoid what we are asked to avoid, keep appointments with our physicians and abides by the counseling we gets we can pull through it to live and achieve whatever goals we set for ourselves.
