Congressman Cohen Announces $1.13 Million for St. Jude

“I am very happy to announce that HHS is giving this award to St. Jude,” said Congressman Cohen. “While sickle-cell disease affects a relatively small portion of the population in the United States, it continues to be an international health problem. I am proud that the scientists at St. Jude are tackling global challenges right here in the 9th District. St. Jude has always been a global consortium of scientific and medical knowledge, and I have faith that their research will continue to lead to more breakthroughs for global problems like sickle cell disease.”

Sickle cell disease is a serious inherited blood disorder that most commonly affects people with origins in Africa, Latin America, the Middle East, or the Mediterranean. Since 1972, the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute has funded research efforts to improve the lives of individuals with sickle cell disease. It is most common in West and Central Africa where as many as 25% of the people have sickle cell trait and 1-2% of all babies are born with a form of the disease. In the United States, there are around 1,000 babies born with sickle cell disease each year. By contrast, in Nigeria, with a population about the third the size of the U.S., between 45,000 and 90,000 babies are born with sickle cell disease every year.

For more information on Sickle Cell Disease, please visit the Sickle Cell Disease Association of America at https://www.sicklecelldisease.org/.

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Contact:
Marilyn Dillihay, Press Secretary, 202-225-3265
Charlie Gerber, Communications Assistant, 202-225-3265