The day that Dorcas Osho and her parents moved to the United States, just one day after her fifth birthday, she began screaming in pain. Her parents scrambled to help their daughter and rushed her to a children’s hospital, where she was diagnosed with sickle cell anemia.
“We, as a family, had to quickly learn how to deal with sickle cell anemia and what it was. We didn’t know anything about it. We experienced two major life changes that year,” Osho said.
Her parents were unaware of the genetic condition; however, people can be carriers of sickle cell and will not develop the disease, but may pass the risk to their children. Osho’s brother was also later diagnosed with the same disease.