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Although it strikes individuals from a variety of backgrounds, sickle cell anemia has always been known as a "black" disease in America. In the Blood argues that ever since the discovery in 1910 and subsequent scientific analysis of the disease, sickle cell anemia has been manipulated to serve social ends-as a tool for securing white identity and a way to establish a hierarchy based on European heritage. Tapper shows how sickle cell anemia was used to promote the superiority of racial purity, to characterize the black body as contaminated, and even to support the notion that modern humans evolved from multiple origins.

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Sickle-cell disease is a unique inherited and incurable condition of the blood cells which, according to doctors, has similarities with virtually all disease conditions known to mankind, includingAIDS and cancer.Commonly affecting Africans and those with an African ancestry, the disease is also prevalent among Arabs, Turks, Greeks, Italians (chiefly Sicilians), Iranians and Indians.As a result of migration and other factors, the disease is rampant the world over.From England to the United States and Canada, from Brazil to the Caribbean, children are still being born with the disease and its trait.Medical science is able to offer little more than palliation, and even in countries with the most advanced medicare, the average life expectancy for sicklers is low-42 years for males and 48 for females.With a population in excess of 150 million, of which one in four are carriers of the sickle cell trait, Nigeria hosts the largest population of sicklers in the world - over 6 million at the last estimate.

Suffering from a severe form of the disease, the type which, especially in sub-Saharan Africa makes survival to adulthood a rarity, the author writes about his childhood, the pains of growing up with a major health impairment.He also talks about his early cigarette and alcohol abuse and of being sexually molested at the age of 7.

In this first of a series, the author touches on the social and political milieu into which he was born and weaves into his story the life experiences of significant others in his web of relationship.

This book will be a source of encouragement to all whom the medical profession gives little prospects, whether of healing or survival

REVIEWER'S COMMENT:

"This is a personal account of aman's struggle through the threatening spasms of life.The novel offers a great deal of information about the sickle-cell disease, the Yoruba, their anthropology, religion, and family systems.It is a definite statement about African culture and belief patterns.The crafting of the story is rich and captivating."

Professor Charles OgbulogoFormer HOD

Department of African & Asian Studies

University of Lagos

Nigeria

... Read more

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This groundbreaking book chronicles the history of sickle cell anemia in the United States, tracing its transformation from an "invisible" malady to a powerful, yet contested, cultural symbol of African American pain and suffering.

Set in Memphis, home of one of the nation's first sickle cell clinics, Dying in the City of the Blues reveals how the recognition, treatment, social understanding, and symbolism of the disease evolved in the twentieth century, shaped by the politics of race, region, health care, and biomedicine. Using medical journals, patients' accounts, black newspapers, blues lyrics, and many other sources, Keith Wailoo follows the disease and its sufferers from the early days of obscurity before sickle cell's "discovery" by Western medicine; through its rise to clinical, scientific, and social prominence in the 1950s; to its politicization in the 1970s and 1980s. Looking forward, he considers the consequences of managed care on the politics of disease in the twenty-first century.

A rich and multilayered narrative, Dying in the City of the Blues offers valuable new insight into the African American experience, the impact of race relations and ideologies on health care, and the politics of science, medicine, and disease. ... Read more

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An up-to-date, informative, and personal discussion of sickle-cell anemia, this guide provides information on medically proven methods of treatment along with patient vignettes. Written primarily for African Americans, who comprise the majority of the victims of sickle-cell anemia, this handbook for patients and those who live or work with them examines the complex issues that surround this genetic disease. Advice on dealing with the physical suffering, inability to work, quality of life issues, and premature death that affect sickle-cell patients is offered in layman's terms to aid patients and caregivers in making informed decisions. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Confidently recommended as a solid and informational primer
Collaboratively written by Allan F. Platt, Jr. (Program Coordinator and Physican Assistant at the George Comprehensive Sickle Cell Center, Grady Health System, Atlanta, Georgia) and Alan Sacerdote (Chief of Adult Endocrinoloty, Woodhull Medical and Mental Health Center and Clinical Profesor of Medicine at SUNY Health Science Center, Brooklyn, New York), Hope And Destiny: A Patient's And Parent's Guide To Sickle Cell Disease And Sickle Cell Trait is a guide written especially for non-specialist general readers of all ages who must cope with sickle cell anemia, either in themselves or in their family and offspring. Individual chapters cover the causes of sickle cell disease; current tretment options; genetic counseling; age-based developmental issues; pain assessment and management; as well as new treatments and research. Hope And Destiny is confidently recommended as a solid and informational primer. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (2)

Awesome
Hope and Destiny was referred to me by one of my parents in school-she is a mother of a student with sickle cell anemia. This book is user friendly, non intimidating and packied with important knowledge for me as a school nurse. It is a reasonable price. It is a book that you cannot sit down and read cover to cover in one sitting- there is just so much useful information. It is a reference book-I have highlighted passages and when my student comes down in crisis I feel that this book enable me to give him better care than I ever thought possible. A WONDERFUL PURCHASE.

a guide for the patients
This book is good for guiding patients suffering from the disease, but as far as carers psychological status is concerned it did not give much details. It is a good book, but was a bit dissapointed because it did not fulfill the requirement of what I have been looking for ... Read more

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A simple introduction to sickle cell anemia, describing its symptoms, its effects on the body, and how to cope with this disease. ... Read more

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In March 2001, the National Institutes of Health issued the following warning: "The number of Web sites offering health-related resources grows every day. Many sites provide valuable information, while others may have information that is unreliable or misleading."Furthermore, because of the rapid increase in Internet-based information, many hours can be wasted searching, selecting, and printing.This book was created for medical professionals, students, and members of the general public who want to conduct medical research using the most advanced tools available and spending the least amount of time doing so. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Sickle Cell Anemia (Diseases and People)
I thought this book was quite interesting.It explained Sickle Cell Anemia in an easy to understand manner. Some parts of the book were boring and seemed a little long, but I liked it when the book used stories of real people who live with the disease.All in all, I thought this book was veryhelpful and informative and I would recomend it to middleschool orhighschool students who are doing a report on the topic. ... Read more

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This book has been created for patients who have decided to make education and research an integral part of the treatment process. Although it also gives information useful to doctors, caregivers and other health professionals, it tells patients where and how to look for information covering virtually all topics related to sickle cell anemia (also Hb S disease; Hemoglobin S disease; Hemoglobin SS disease; sickle cell disease; sickle cell trait), from the essentials to the most advanced areas of research. The title of this book includes the word official. This reflects the fact that the sourcebook draws from public, academic, government, and peer-reviewed research. Selected readings from various agencies are reproduced to give you some of the latest official information available to date on sickle cell anemia. Given patients' increasing sophistication in using the Internet, abundant references to reliable Internet-based resources are provided throughout this sourcebook. Where possible, guidance is provided on how to obtain free-of-charge, primary research results as well as more detailed information via the Internet. E-book and electronic versions of this sourcebook are fully interactive with each of the Internet sites mentioned (clicking on a hyperlink automatically opens your browser to the site indicated). Hard-copy users of this sourcebook can type cited Web addresses directly into their browsers to obtain access to the corresponding sites. In addition to extensive references accessible via the Internet, chapters include glossaries of technical or uncommon terms. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Captivating
The Early Life Of Jeomie East is a wonderful book.This book is touching, loving, and enlightening.It helps you realize that there is an illness out there that can take hold of your life and completely change your view of it.Jeomie wrote a touching autobiography of her experiences.The photo album portion of this book helps you put faces with names.And the poems and the tributes were touching.I enjoyed it, and I learned so much.Thank you for sharing.

Absorbing and Meaningful
The Early Life Of Jeomie East is a wonderful book.This book is touching, loving, and enlightening.It helps you realize that there is an illness out there that can take hold of your life and completely change your view of it.Jeomie wrote a touching autobiography of her experiences.The photo album portion of this book helps you put faces with names.And the poems and the tributes were touching.I enjoyed it, and I learned so much.Thank you for sharing. ... Read more

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This superb new series is designed to present the facts and promote awareness and understanding of conditions that many children learn to live with. Each book: - introduces a condition, examining its causes and effects - looks at control, medication and treatment - covers the help and support available - includes numerous real-life case studies - is written with the help and advice of key experts ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Not Enough
Unfortunately, this book offers nothing really new on the disease or methods of treatment.It was disappointing, to say the least. ... Read more