Husband has Sickle Cell gene and didn't tell me

[Anonymous]

One thing of note. A cure for sickle cell is near. Actually it already exists, but the cost is prohibitive for most people. https://www.pharmacytimes.com/view/patient-cured-of-sickle-cell-anemia-with-innovative-gene-therapy

As time goes by the cost of the cure should decrease.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am a carrier of the trait, as was my mom. My mom told me I was negative so I was totally surprised when I came up positive during my pregnancy labs. This is not a big deal and not worth you getting an amniocentesis over. Your child has a 50 percent chance of being a carrier. One of my kids is, the other isn't. We need to stay well hydrated and listen to our bodies, that is all. Please calm down. And not only black people can have it. This is misinformation.

Not everyone that has sickle cell trait is black, but everyone that has sickle cell trait has a black ancestor. They traced the origin of the gene back to one child that lived in Africa 7,300 years ago.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-43373247

https://www.the-independent.com/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/hidden-black-ancestry-linked-to-rise-in-sickle-cell-blood-disorder-738008.html

This is true. This is how there are people that physically appear to be fully European that have sickle cell trait or disease. The African ancestry decreases with each generation, but the sickle cell allele can keep getting passed down. The ancestry won't always show up on an ancestry DNA test either because those tests only go back 6-8 generations. I was taught that we are to screen every patient regardless of what they self-report their background as or what they physically appear to be for this exact reason. Not every medical professional is aware of this or follows this protocol though.

This, this, this. I tested positive for sickle cell trait (not the disease). I took an ancestry test, and it said 2.7% Sub-Saharan African. I look fully European (obviously).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am a carrier of the trait, as was my mom. My mom told me I was negative so I was totally surprised when I came up positive during my pregnancy labs. This is not a big deal and not worth you getting an amniocentesis over. Your child has a 50 percent chance of being a carrier. One of my kids is, the other isn't. We need to stay well hydrated and listen to our bodies, that is all. Please calm down. And not only black people can have it. This is misinformation.

Not everyone that has sickle cell trait is black, but everyone that has sickle cell trait has a black ancestor. They traced the origin of the gene back to one child that lived in Africa 7,300 years ago.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-43373247

https://www.the-independent.com/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/hidden-black-ancestry-linked-to-rise-in-sickle-cell-blood-disorder-738008.html

This is true. This is how there are people that physically appear to be fully European that have sickle cell trait or disease. The African ancestry decreases with each generation, but the sickle cell allele can keep getting passed down. The ancestry won't always show up on an ancestry DNA test either because those tests only go back 6-8 generations. I was taught that we are to screen every patient regardless of what they self-report their background as or what they physically appear to be for this exact reason. Not every medical professional is aware of this or follows this protocol though.

This, this, this. I tested positive for sickle cell trait (not the disease). I took an ancestry test, and it said 2.7% Sub-Saharan African. I look fully European (obviously).

Theoretically, this can and does happen with traits from any type of ancestry. Here's a hypothetical scenario. Imagine an East Asian and a European person have a child together. The Asian parent has brown eyes (2 alleles for brown eyes - homozygous). The White/European parent has blue eyes (2 alleles for blue eyes - homozygous). Their child together will automatically have one allele for brown eyes and one allele for blue eyes (heterozygous). Imagine that biracial child marries a fully East Asian person who has brown eyes. Their child(ren) will be roughly 75% Asian but could carry one allele for blue eyes (if it gets passed down from the biracial parent). If the future generations continue to marry fully Asian people, the allele for blue eyes could continue to get passed down even when the European ancestry has become such a small percentage. Eventually you will end up with a fully Asian person that carries the gene for blue eyes (as long as that allele continues to be inherited). This is how new traits and genes are introduced into populations that they didn't originate in.

Genetics are way more intricate than the average person thinks. Our DNA comes from many generations of people that existed prior to us and our parents AKA ancestors. A "genetic throwback" is really just a recessive trait that has been masked for generations (by a dominant trait) but suddenly appears again when two people who unknowingly both carry that recessive allele have a child together.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am a carrier of the trait, as was my mom. My mom told me I was negative so I was totally surprised when I came up positive during my pregnancy labs. This is not a big deal and not worth you getting an amniocentesis over. Your child has a 50 percent chance of being a carrier. One of my kids is, the other isn't. We need to stay well hydrated and listen to our bodies, that is all. Please calm down. And not only black people can have it. This is misinformation.

Not everyone that has sickle cell trait is black, but everyone that has sickle cell trait has a black ancestor. They traced the origin of the gene back to one child that lived in Africa 7,300 years ago.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-43373247

https://www.the-independent.com/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/hidden-black-ancestry-linked-to-rise-in-sickle-cell-blood-disorder-738008.html

This is true. This is how there are people that physically appear to be fully European that have sickle cell trait or disease. The African ancestry decreases with each generation, but the sickle cell allele can keep getting passed down. The ancestry won't always show up on an ancestry DNA test either because those tests only go back 6-8 generations. I was taught that we are to screen every patient regardless of what they self-report their background as or what they physically appear to be for this exact reason. Not every medical professional is aware of this or follows this protocol though.

This, this, this. I tested positive for sickle cell trait (not the disease). I took an ancestry test, and it said 2.7% Sub-Saharan African. I look fully European (obviously).

Theoretically, this can and does happen with traits from any type of ancestry. Here's a hypothetical scenario. Imagine an East Asian and a European person have a child together. The Asian parent has brown eyes (2 alleles for brown eyes - homozygous). The White/European parent has blue eyes (2 alleles for blue eyes - homozygous). Their child together will automatically have one allele for brown eyes and one allele for blue eyes (heterozygous). Imagine that biracial child marries a fully East Asian person who has brown eyes. Their child(ren) will be roughly 75% Asian but could carry one allele for blue eyes (if it gets passed down from the biracial parent). If the future generations continue to marry fully Asian people, the allele for blue eyes could continue to get passed down even when the European ancestry has become such a small percentage. Eventually you will end up with a fully Asian person that carries the gene for blue eyes (as long as that allele continues to be inherited). This is how new traits and genes are introduced into populations that they didn't originate in.

Genetics are way more intricate than the average person thinks. Our DNA comes from many generations of people that existed prior to us and our parents AKA ancestors. A "genetic throwback" is really just a recessive trait that has been masked for generations (by a dominant trait) but suddenly appears again when two people who unknowingly both carry that recessive allele have a child together.

Yep. I know a fully red headed child who has two black parents.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am a carrier of the trait, as was my mom. My mom told me I was negative so I was totally surprised when I came up positive during my pregnancy labs. This is not a big deal and not worth you getting an amniocentesis over. Your child has a 50 percent chance of being a carrier. One of my kids is, the other isn't. We need to stay well hydrated and listen to our bodies, that is all. Please calm down. And not only black people can have it. This is misinformation.

Not everyone that has sickle cell trait is black, but everyone that has sickle cell trait has a black ancestor. They traced the origin of the gene back to one child that lived in Africa 7,300 years ago.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-43373247

https://www.the-independent.com/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/hidden-black-ancestry-linked-to-rise-in-sickle-cell-blood-disorder-738008.html

This is true. This is how there are people that physically appear to be fully European that have sickle cell trait or disease. The African ancestry decreases with each generation, but the sickle cell allele can keep getting passed down. The ancestry won't always show up on an ancestry DNA test either because those tests only go back 6-8 generations. I was taught that we are to screen every patient regardless of what they self-report their background as or what they physically appear to be for this exact reason. Not every medical professional is aware of this or follows this protocol though.

This, this, this. I tested positive for sickle cell trait (not the disease). I took an ancestry test, and it said 2.7% Sub-Saharan African. I look fully European (obviously).

Theoretically, this can and does happen with traits from any type of ancestry. Here's a hypothetical scenario. Imagine an East Asian and a European person have a child together. The Asian parent has brown eyes (2 alleles for brown eyes - homozygous). The White/European parent has blue eyes (2 alleles for blue eyes - homozygous). Their child together will automatically have one allele for brown eyes and one allele for blue eyes (heterozygous). Imagine that biracial child marries a fully East Asian person who has brown eyes. Their child(ren) will be roughly 75% Asian but could carry one allele for blue eyes (if it gets passed down from the biracial parent). If the future generations continue to marry fully Asian people, the allele for blue eyes could continue to get passed down even when the European ancestry has become such a small percentage. Eventually you will end up with a fully Asian person that carries the gene for blue eyes (as long as that allele continues to be inherited). This is how new traits and genes are introduced into populations that they didn't originate in.

Genetics are way more intricate than the average person thinks. Our DNA comes from many generations of people that existed prior to us and our parents AKA ancestors. A "genetic throwback" is really just a recessive trait that has been masked for generations (by a dominant trait) but suddenly appears again when two people who unknowingly both carry that recessive allele have a child together.

This is what the thought process behind the one-drop rule in the US was. There was a widespread fear that genetic markers and physical features that are specific to people of African ancestry would be introduced into the pure white population through admixture via interracial relationships. Once there was a sizable population of biracial Americans of varying looks and percentages, it became necessary to simply rule that anyone with any amount of verified African ancestry was legally racially black and could not mingle with whites rather than try to guess what genes someone was carrying by simply looking at them. The goal was to keep black genetic markers and physical features out of the white gene pool.

We clearly know that this implementation of segregation didn't entirely work. There are "black" Americans walking around with genetic markers and physical features that are specific to European populations, and (to a lesser extent) there are "white" Americans walking around with genetic markers and physical features that are specific to African populations.

[Anonymous]

My white partner and white self were screened and we were both carriers of recessive genetic issues we'd never heard of. Fortunately, they were different issues.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's a widespread myth that sickle cell trait is always asymptomatic. Sickle cell trait is an intermediate phenotype, not a true asymptomatic carrier state. A proportion of individuals with SCT WILL have pain crises and other symptoms. Think of the trait as a less severe version of the disease. OP, I can't decide for you if you're in the right to be angry. I can only provide you with scientific facts.

This needed to be said. Not enough people understand that death can occur from SCT. I don't even think the scientific and medical community have ever been able to gather accurate statistics on how many people have actually died as a result of complications from SCT. It is underresearched and can be mistaken for other things. A girl that I went to college with 10 years ago died in her sleep in her dorm room from SCT red blood cell sickling. They originally thought she had died from inhaling gum (and that is what all of the first news reports said) but later determined that it was as a result of SCT once they performed the autopsy. RIP Shanice. 🙏🏿

https://www.observer-reporter.com/news/2015/mar/16/coroner-cal-u-basketball-player-died-of-sickle-cell-complications/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's a widespread myth that sickle cell trait is always asymptomatic. Sickle cell trait is an intermediate phenotype, not a true asymptomatic carrier state. A proportion of individuals with SCT WILL have pain crises and other symptoms. Think of the trait as a less severe version of the disease. OP, I can't decide for you if you're in the right to be angry. I can only provide you with scientific facts.

This needed to be said. Not enough people understand that death can occur from SCT. I don't even think the scientific and medical community have ever been able to gather accurate statistics on how many people have actually died as a result of complications from SCT. It is underresearched and can be mistaken for other things. A girl that I went to college with 10 years ago died in her sleep in her dorm room from SCT red blood cell sickling. They originally thought she had died from inhaling gum (and that is what all of the first news reports said) but later determined that it was as a result of SCT once they performed the autopsy. RIP Shanice. 🙏🏿

https://www.observer-reporter.com/news/2015/mar/16/coroner-cal-u-basketball-player-died-of-sickle-cell-complications/

I hate hearing of stories like this as a mom of a child with the trait. It’s terrifying because there is an added potential for danger that you have zero control over. My child got it from my husband, and the rest of our children do not have it. I make sure that she stays extra hydrated and does not go overboard when she’s running around playing (which often means resting more than her siblings have to). I dread the day when she’s old enough to want to play a sport. As a parent, you want them to be mindful of their limitations without creating resentment.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:One thing of note. A cure for sickle cell is near. Actually it already exists, but the cost is prohibitive for most people. https://www.pharmacytimes.com/view/patient-cured-of-sickle-cell-anemia-with-innovative-gene-therapy

As time goes by the cost of the cure should decrease.

This doesn't have any positive effect on the genes of the patient's child(ren) though because it doesn't target the DNA in reproductive cells. It only treats the patient. The patient will still pass the sickle cell gene onto their child(ren). Sickle cell can't be eradicated until they find a way to safely and effectively remove the gene from the reproductive cells. Additionally, I don't think they offer this treatment to people who have sickle cell trait. I think it is only offered to people who have sickle cell disease.

https://www.genome.gov/sites/default/files/media/files/2022-09/Sickle_cell_disease_gene_therapy_FAQ_0.pdf

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Being a sickle cell carrier lends an advantage - it's protective against malaria (that's why lots of black people have the gene -- the gene helped carriers survive in africa for a long time).

having sickle cell requires two parents, so your children will be fine (and will actually have an advantage).

https://www.reddit.com/r/DebateEvolution/comments/1gfav0r/the_argument_over_sickle_cell/

I don’t know about this based on personal experience. I am a sickle cell carrier and got malaria while traveling in the DR Congo. It was severe. I had to be hospitalized. It ruined my trip. Worst time of my life.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Being a sickle cell carrier lends an advantage - it's protective against malaria (that's why lots of black people have the gene -- the gene helped carriers survive in africa for a long time).

having sickle cell requires two parents, so your children will be fine (and will actually have an advantage).

https://www.reddit.com/r/DebateEvolution/comments/1gfav0r/the_argument_over_sickle_cell/

I don’t know about this based on personal experience. I am a sickle cell carrier and got malaria while traveling in the DR Congo. It was severe. I had to be hospitalized. It ruined my trip. Worst time of my life.

It’s definitely not foolproof. It depends on what genotype you have. There’s different forms of sickle cell.

The AA genotype is the typical genotype (no sickle cell trait or disease). It offers no protection against malaria.

The AS (means you have sickle cell trait) and AC (means you have Hemoglobin C trait), and CC (means you have Hemoglobin C disease) genotypes are shown to be protective against malaria and have the lowest mortality (death) rates when infected with malaria.

The SS (means you have the extreme and most common form of sickle cell disease) and SC (means you have a milder and less common form of sickle cell disease) genotypes are shown to be somewhat protective but also have the highest mortality (death) rates when infected with malaria.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Being a sickle cell carrier lends an advantage - it's protective against malaria (that's why lots of black people have the gene -- the gene helped carriers survive in africa for a long time).

having sickle cell requires two parents, so your children will be fine (and will actually have an advantage).

https://www.reddit.com/r/DebateEvolution/comments/1gfav0r/the_argument_over_sickle_cell/

I don’t know about this based on personal experience. I am a sickle cell carrier and got malaria while traveling in the DR Congo. It was severe. I had to be hospitalized. It ruined my trip. Worst time of my life.

It’s definitely not foolproof. It depends on what genotype you have. There’s different forms of sickle cell.

The AA genotype is the typical genotype (no sickle cell trait or disease). It offers no protection against malaria.

The AS (means you have sickle cell trait) and AC (means you have Hemoglobin C trait), and CC (means you have Hemoglobin C disease) genotypes are shown to be protective against malaria and have the lowest mortality (death) rates when infected with malaria.

The SS (means you have the extreme and most common form of sickle cell disease) and SC (means you have a milder and less common form of sickle cell disease) genotypes are shown to be somewhat protective but also have the highest mortality (death) rates when infected with malaria.

I’m AS. I just have plain ol’ sickle cell trait.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Being a sickle cell carrier lends an advantage - it's protective against malaria (that's why lots of black people have the gene -- the gene helped carriers survive in africa for a long time).

having sickle cell requires two parents, so your children will be fine (and will actually have an advantage).

https://www.reddit.com/r/DebateEvolution/comments/1gfav0r/the_argument_over_sickle_cell/

I don’t know about this based on personal experience. I am a sickle cell carrier and got malaria while traveling in the DR Congo. It was severe. I had to be hospitalized. It ruined my trip. Worst time of my life.

It’s definitely not foolproof. It depends on what genotype you have. There’s different forms of sickle cell.

The AA genotype is the typical genotype (no sickle cell trait or disease). It offers no protection against malaria.

The AS (means you have sickle cell trait) and AC (means you have Hemoglobin C trait), and CC (means you have Hemoglobin C disease) genotypes are shown to be protective against malaria and have the lowest mortality (death) rates when infected with malaria.

The SS (means you have the extreme and most common form of sickle cell disease) and SC (means you have a milder and less common form of sickle cell disease) genotypes are shown to be somewhat protective but also have the highest mortality (death) rates when infected with malaria.

I’m AS. I just have plain ol’ sickle cell trait.

What’s your blood type then?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If he is black, this would have been discussed at some point with your health care team.

If he isn't black, but is from a middle east, mediterranean, south asian background, then he likely had family with the disease to have been tested himself.

OP here - He has African ancestry (15% according to his 23andMe). The remaining percentage is European.

His parents found out that he has the gene after routine newborn screening in the hospital when he was born.

One person with the trait doesn't matter. Do you have it OP? If not, keep it moving. We are Black and my Mom and Sister have the trait. No one else.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Being a sickle cell carrier lends an advantage - it's protective against malaria (that's why lots of black people have the gene -- the gene helped carriers survive in africa for a long time).

having sickle cell requires two parents, so your children will be fine (and will actually have an advantage).

https://www.reddit.com/r/DebateEvolution/comments/1gfav0r/the_argument_over_sickle_cell/

I don’t know about this based on personal experience. I am a sickle cell carrier and got malaria while traveling in the DR Congo. It was severe. I had to be hospitalized. It ruined my trip. Worst time of my life.

It’s definitely not foolproof. It depends on what genotype you have. There’s different forms of sickle cell.

The AA genotype is the typical genotype (no sickle cell trait or disease). It offers no protection against malaria.

The AS (means you have sickle cell trait) and AC (means you have Hemoglobin C trait), and CC (means you have Hemoglobin C disease) genotypes are shown to be protective against malaria and have the lowest mortality (death) rates when infected with malaria.

The SS (means you have the extreme and most common form of sickle cell disease) and SC (means you have a milder and less common form of sickle cell disease) genotypes are shown to be somewhat protective but also have the highest mortality (death) rates when infected with malaria.

I’m AS. I just have plain ol’ sickle cell trait.

What’s your blood type then?

O+