Today, NHS England and NHS Improvement (NHSE/I) announced a new policy making stem cell transplants available to adults with Sickle Cell Disease when they have a matched sibling donor. Currently, stem cell transplants are only available to children.
Caitlin Farrow, Head of Policy and Public Affairs at Anthony Nolan says: ‘We welcome NHSE/I’s decision to make stem cell transplants available to adults with Sickle Cell Disease when they have a matched sibling donor. We also recognise that there are many adults who don’t have a matched sibling donor and still need a potentially curative treatment option.
‘Over time, we hope that the policy will evolve so that more adults with Sickle Cell Disease can benefit from a stem cell transplant when clinically appropriate. We encourage NHSE/I to make stem cell transplants available to adults, via a clinical trial, when they have a haploidentical donor.’