Five celebrities with sickle cell anemia

The most common hereditary hematologic disorder in the world, Sickle Cell anemia primarily affects Black Africans and Americans, as well as some persons of Mediterranean, East Indian or Latin American heritage.

Celebrities with sickle cell anemia

The month of September is dedicated to Sickle Cell Anemia awareness. In effort to spread awareness on the disease, I would like to present five celebrities who have the chronic disease.

1.Tionne “T-Boz” Watkins (singer) Sickle cell warrior

Tionne Watkins aka T-Boz (Photo: @therealtboz/Instagram)

Tionne Tenese Watkins better known by her stage name T-Boz, is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, actress, author, and executive producer. When T-boz became ill during one of TLC’s tour, the singer opened up about her battle with the Sickle cell. She has since had a promising career and a beautiful daughter named Chase.

2. Prodigy (rapper, Mobb Deep, Sickle Cell advocate)

Half of the duo the infamous rap group Mobb Deep, the rapper from New York spread awareness on the disease that affects him daily. Albert Johnson would unfortunately pass away on June 20, 2017 after complications from an accidental choking while he was in the hospital for sickle cell treatment. Prodigy always made it his business to educate the community on sickle cell and living a healthier lifestyle. He will be greatly missed.

“I was diagnosed with sickle cell when I was 3 months old. I have the worse type of sickle cell… the “SS” type. If I don’t take care of myself and do the right things, I will experience a severely painful sickle cell crisis; all my joints hurt; it’s a bad scene. Before I really knew how to take care of myself I was in and out of the hospital…they had me on morphine for pain; IV’s in my arm; couldn’t get comfortable for days at a time…it was really hard on my body” (Prodigy, 2010)

3. Tiki Barber (pro football player, sickle cell warrior)

Tiki Barber (Photo by David Shankbone, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons | https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tiki_Barber_by_David_Shankbone.jpg)

Atiim Kiambu “Tiki” Barber is a former American football running back who played for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL) for ten seasons. Barber has a launched a national health education campaign,
Be Sickle Smart, to raise more awareness on sickle cell anemia.

4. Larenz Tate (actor)

Larenz Tate is a talented film and television actor. He is best known for his role as O-Dog in the 1993 drama film, Menace II Society. His other films include Dead Presidents, Love Jones, A Man Apart, Waist Deep, Biker Boyz and Ray.

“It’s really important to know if you carry the disease,” Tate says. He stresses the importance of screening as many do not know if they have the disease.

5. Miles Davis (musician)

Photo By Tom Palumbo from New York City, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons | https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Miles_Davis_by_Palumbo.jpg

Miles Davis was an American jazz musician, trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is widely considered one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century.

Davis died at the age of 65 in 1991 due to pneumonia, respiratory failure and a stroke at a hospital in Santa Monica, California.

A statement released by his doctor and the hospital said. Mr. Davis was plagued by bad health, including diabetes, hip problems related to sickle cell anemia, and two bouts of drug addictions.