New sickle cell service means shorter travel and faster care
Sickle cell disease patients are benefiting from a new transfusion service, which helps keep symptoms under control and means they no longer need to travel to London for their care.
Delivered at Basildon Hospital, it is first being offered to younger patients and then to adults for their six-weekly exchange transfusion, which swaps the unusually shaped red blood cells of sickle cell patients with healthy donor blood.
The disease is an inherited condition affecting red blood cells, most common in people of Black heritage. Usually detected during pregnancy or newborn screening, it can lead to organ damage, strokes, vision loss and can be life‑threatening without proper treatment.
One of the first patients to be treated was Abdul Broni, 16, from Aveley. He said: “For the past two years I have had to travel to London for my treatment every six weeks, and it takes about two hours to get there and back on the train.
“Today, it took me ten minutes and makes such a difference because it will give me more independence to travel to and from my appointments as I am closer to home. It means I will have more time to see my friends and study for my GCSEs.”
Daniel Omolabi, a 22-year-old music student who lives in Laindon, is one of the adult patients who will soon begin to get his treatments locally for the first time.
He said: “I started my care at Basildon, so it is really nice to come back to where I know everyone and to a place that is familiar.
“No travelling to London will save me time and stress, because there have been times when I have been stranded and my parents have had to come and collect me, or trains were cancelled. That meant me missing my appointment, which then risked my health.”
Eva Tsouana, Consultant Paediatrician at the Trust and specialist in Sickle Cell and oncology, said: “This treatment at Basildon will initially benefit around six young patients and 20 adults each year, with numbers growing as the need increases. It makes a real difference to our patients’ quality of life, because it must be repeated every four to six weeks.”
The machine for the service has been made possible thanks to the joint efforts of the Trust’s Paediatrics and Adults Sickle Cell Service. Investment in the service has come from the NHS England-run MedTech Funding Mandate, with the Trust collaborating with NHS Blood and Transplant.
Henry Jarvis, Lead Therapeutic Apheresis Services nurse at NHS Blood and Transplant, said: “By collaborating across trusts, we are making better use of our collective skills and resources, which will improve access to treatment and create a smoother experience for patients.
“This partnership is about putting patients first and ensuring care is delivered in the right place, at the right time.”