c.2026, The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press
\n$29.95
\n338 pages<\/p>\n
By Terri Schlichenmeyer
\nThe Truth Contributor<\/p>\n
Four weeks of testing, and you\u2019re exhausted.<\/p>\n
Two gallons of blood, maybe three, have been removed, no lie. You\u2019ve laid on tables, slid through machines, been scanned so much you lost count and finally, your doctors have a diagnosis. As in the new book Curved Air<\/em> by Kevin Davies,<\/strong> you have hope there\u2019s a what next?<\/em><\/p>\n Though the disease was known in parts of Africa and likely existed here in the United States for hundreds of years, sickle cell disease (SCD) is a relative newcomer in disease research.<\/p>\n Says Davies, \u201cSickle cell was first identified more than 120 years ago\u201d and it was considered as a \u201cBlack disease.\u201d Because of that, discrimination followed \u201csickle cell warriors\u201d and research was scant, though white people can and do<\/em> get SCD.<\/p>\n With \u201cagonizing\u201d pain as a major symptom, \u201cSCD is one of roughly 7,000 genetic diseases\u201d currently known to science. When someone has SCD, a genetic mutation causes their red blood cells to curve and get stuck in blood vessels, rather than flowing freely as blood cells are supposed to do. This diminishes the oxygen supply \u201cto various parts of the body\u2026 which causes inflammation and pain,\u201d jaundice, stroke, and damaged organs. Anemia, Davies says, can leave a patient with fatigue and shortness of breath. Anticipating pain crises causes anxiety and PTSD.<\/p>\n Says Davies, \u201cMore than forty million people carry\u201d one copy of the genetic mutation that causes SCD, and \u201cfive hundred thousand affected\u201d babies are born with the disease per year, worldwide.<\/p>\n Over decades, research was done, haphazardly. Papers were written, treatments were tried, used, or discarded. Doctors discovered that genetic testing could prevent new cases, a heartbreak for would-be parents. Researchers discovered that \u201ca perfect storm\u201d of confluence spread SCD: malaria, human population, and mosquitoes.<\/p>\n There was always hope that someday, sickle cell disease might be cured.<\/p>\n And then CRISPR gene editing therapy was approved by the FDA, and a brave volunteer named Victoria Gray stepped forward\u2026<\/p>\n So you want to \u2013 need to <\/em>\u2013 learn more about sickle cell disease. It\u2019s imperative for you, and this is your book but there are things you\u2019ll want to know before you dive into Curved Air<\/em>.<\/p>\n Because author Kevin Davies is the editor of The CRISPR Journal<\/em>, you can expect up-to-date, cutting-edge information but that\u2019s a two-sided coin: the information is heavy-duty, not always easily grasped, and it\u2019s burdened by acronyms that are easily overwhelming. Yes, that\u2019ll inform you, but it may also send you elsewhere for further understanding, which really should\u2019ve come from this book.<\/p>\n And yet, if you or someone you love has SCD, this is your book<\/em>. It explains where the disease came from, why it hasn\u2019t been completely cured yet, and what kind of hope you can hold. It\u2019s a good start on a path to comprehension.<\/p>\n Also be aware that the narrative here is sometimes padded with journalistic fluff that might annoy you, if you\u2019re eager to get to the science. Indeed, Curved Air<\/em> will teach you. Then again, it also might test you.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" c.2026, The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press $29.95 338 pages By Terri Schlichenmeyer The Truth Contributor Four weeks of testing, and you\u2019re exhausted. Two gallons of blood, maybe three, have been removed, no lie. You\u2019ve laid on tables, slid through machines, been scanned so much you lost count and finally, your doctors have a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":20720,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[],"wf_post_folders":[20],"class_list":["post-20719","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-book_review"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20719","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20719"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20719\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20721,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20719\/revisions\/20721"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/20720"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20719"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20719"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20719"},{"taxonomy":"wf_post_folders","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wf_post_folders?post=20719"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}