Dartmouth College students host special blood drive to raise awareness about sickle cell disease – and the need for more diverse blood donors
By Peter de Paolo, Red Cross writer “Sickle cell awareness is very important to the Black community, and we want our fellow students to be educated, not only about the disease, but also about the need for blood donations for patients who have it.” Maya Bryson is president of Pi Theta C hapter of Delta Sigma Theta sorority at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire . She and her sor ority sisters teamed up with the American Red Cross to host a campus blood drive aimed at collecting donations from diverse donors , especially those identifying as Black or African American. Sickle cell disease is the most common genetically inherited blood disorder in the U.S. It affects an estimated 100,000 people , most of whom are of Black or African American descent. The disease affects red blood cells, making them misshapen and hard, and keeping them from delivering oxygen throughout the body. If you have sickle cell disease at birth, it has to be managed througho...
