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Updated: Jul 2, 2025

A Precision Medicine Tool for Measurement and Monitoring of Hemoglobin S in Sickle Cell Disease Patients Receiving Transfusion Therapy
Voxelotor improves red blood cell functionality in children with sickle cell anaemia: An ancillary study of the
Satheesh Chonat1, Earl Fields1, Hannah Baratz1
1Aflac Cancer and Blood Disorders Center of Children's Healthcare of Atlanta and Emory University Department of Pediatrics Atlanta Georgia USA.
Introduction:
Sickle haemoglobin (HbS) polymerisation perturbs red blood cell (RBC) rheology and drives sickle cell disease (SCD) pathophysiology. Voxelotor is an HbS polymerisation inhibitor that increases haemoglobin (Hb)-oxygen affinity.
Methods/Results:
In this 48-week, prospective, single-centre translational study, 10 children aged 4-11 years with SCD were treated with voxelotor. Improvements in RBC deformability were observed using osmotic/oxygen gradient ektacytometry, with increases in minimal and maximal elongation index and reductions in point of sickling. Increased Hb and reduced markers of haemolysis were also observed.
Conclusion:
These findings suggest that voxelotor treatment is associated with reduced RBC sickling and haemolysis in children with SCD.
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05:23Continuous Manual Exchange Transfusion for Patients with Sickle Cell Disease: An Efficient Method to Avoid Iron Overload
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