What Is Sickle Cell Disease? 

Sickle cell disease is an inherited blood disorder, passed down through genes from one’s birth parents.iv

With sickle cell disease, the body cannot make healthy hemoglobin, a vital protein in red blood cells that delivers oxygen throughout the body.i While healthy red blood cells are round and move through small blood vessels to deliver oxygen, red blood cells for those with sickle cell disease are damaged and become hard, sticky, and look like a C-shape, or a “sickle.” iv, vThese sickled red blood cells die early and can get stuck, clogging blood flow in the blood vessels.iv, vi

Individuals with sickle cell disease often experience periodic episodes of extreme pain, known as pain crises, due to this blocked blood flow.v Along with extreme pain, this can lead to other lifelong issues like infection, stroke, and even organ failure,vi sometimes leading to an early death.vii

Sickle cell affects an estimated 100,000 people in the U.S. and is most common among people of African, Hispanic, Middle Eastern, and South East Asian descent, who oftentimes face inequities when seeking care.viii

What Types of Challenges Do Patients with Sickle Cell Disease Face?

Often, people with sickle cell disease have significant health problems that may result in unpredictable pain episodes and frequent healthcare visits, and many face health-related stigma and racial bias when seeking care.ix For example, patients with sickle cell often wait 25% longer than other emergency room patients before receiving care,x and Black patients are 22% less likely to receive pain medication for any condition compared to white patients.xi

They can even be mislabeled as “drug seekers” because the symptoms of the disease are largely invisible to the naked eye.xii Sometimes these sudden, excruciating pain episodes can last up to 11 days on average.xiii However, some doctors and nurses do not believe the severity of their pain.xiv 

Additionally, many people with sickle cell do not have access to the specialized care they need, despite the disease’s devastating impacts. Without access to specialists, a symptom-focused approach to care can lead healthcare providers, who typically are not specialists, to overlook the root cause of the disease.viii

According to Dr. Kim Smith-Whitley, Medical Affairs Lead for Sickle Cell Disease at Pfizer, healthcare teams with expertise in providing sickle cell-related care are often hard to find because they are uncommon. Because of this, support systems for people with sickle cell are very important. “Patients, like Makenzie, and caregivers must become advocates to find the right medical team to work with them to maximize their health and partner with them to find the best treatment approach,” says Dr. Smith-Whitley.

But advocacy doesn’t stop at finding the right medical team. “Challenges like transportation to medical appointments, limited access to mental healthcare, and difficulty navigating the healthcare system can make an already isolating experience even harder,” she continues. These barriers can prevent patients from getting the care they need, especially when living with a condition that often goes unseen. Dr. Smith-Whitley encourages patients and caregivers to seek out community-based organizations and resources that can help ease these burdens.

Closing the care gap for people living with sickle cell disease takes more than good intentions; it takes partnership, persistence, and a willingness to reimagine what support can look like. That’s where Pfizer is leaning in. Through its Patient Engagement team, Pfizer is helping support the fight against sickle cell disease, working hand-in-hand with patients, caregivers, and advocates to help break down barriers to care.

Whether it’s supporting non-profit organizations to help ease the burden of travel to healthcare appointments or scholarship programs to help empower eligible individuals with sickle cell to pursue their academic and vocational goals, Pfizer’s goal is simple: meeting individuals with sickle cell where they are and supporting the fight against sickle cell disease.

Why Is Proactive Care for Sickle Cell Important?

For far too long, innovation in this space has lagged—particularly for more proactive care and education to help manage symptoms and increase longevity.v Dr. Smith-Whitley believes that taking a more proactive approach to care provides the opportunity for patients and caregivers to focus on decreasing the likelihood of complications such as the sudden onset of unpredictable pain and certain bacterial infections.viThis includes partnering with your healthcare team to explore options to decrease sickle cell-related complications.

“Sickle cell care needs to go beyond just managing pain crises as they happen,” says Dr. Smith-Whitley. “Effective, proactive care and education could help patients reclaim control and allow them to enjoy more of life’s precious moments.”

When living with sickle cell disease, it is crucial to find strength in the community, consider a proactive approach to care, and stay informed about the latest advancements. Makenzie has learned this through lived experience. Diagnosed with sickle cell at birth, she grew up surrounded by the support of her family and a dedicated healthcare team. Her parents encouraged her to pursue all of her passions—cheering, singing, dancing, even softball and volleyball. Makenzie never let the disease determine her limits. Over time, she came to understand not only how to manage her condition but how to speak up for herself and take control of her health.

After transitioning out of pediatric care, Makenzie found herself stepping into a new kind of independence—going to appointments by herself without her parents or long-time healthcare team by her side. It wasn’t easy, but the process taught her the importance of finding a care team that listens, builds trust, and takes her condition seriously. Most of all, this shift pushed her to advocate for herself and take a more proactive role in her long-term health.

Makenzie’s journey with sickle cell didn’t just shape her. From a young age, she was fascinated by the world of healthcare, often pretending to be a nurse with a toy stethoscope in one hand and a wide range of questions for doctors at her appointments. But it was living with sickle cell day after day, dealing with uncertainty, and learning how to manage her condition that turned her childhood curiosity into her inspiration for pursuing a career choice. Now, Makenzie is studying to become a nurse, inspired by her journey and hoping to one day support others living with sickle cell the way her care team supported her.

“Be your own advocate” is a phrase that’s become Makenzie’s guiding principle. For her, comprehensive care isn’t just about managing pain; Makenzie is proof that sickle cell disease may shape someone’s path—but it doesn’t have to define it. 

And through cross-industry collaboration, the hope is that other people living with sickle cell disease can have a similar reality. “Our work isn’t finished,” says Dr. Smith-Whitley. “Through continued research, resources, and support programs for people living with sickle cell, Pfizer’s commitment to the sickle cell community goes beyond medicine. We strive to meet people where they are—fighting to ensure they feel seen, heard, and empowered through every step of their journey.”

Learn more about Pfizer’s continued commitment to sickle cell and access additional resources at pfizersicklecellcommitment.com.

PP-LTV-USA-3391 November 2025

Preventing 1 Million Heart Attacks and Strokes

Overview

Heart attacks and strokes can be catastrophic, life-changing events that are all too common. Heart disease and strokes are preventable, yet they remain the leading causes of death, disability, and healthcare spending in the US.  Alarmingly, many of these events happen to adults ages 35-64—over 800,000 in 2016. Million Hearts® is a national initiative with a network of partners focused on preventing one million heart attacks, strokes, and other cardiovascular events by 2022. Coordinated actions by public health and healthcare professionals, communities, and healthcare systems can and will keep people healthy, optimize care, and improve outcomes within priority populations.

Healthcare professionals and systems can:

• Focus on the ABCS of heart health: Aspirin use when appropriate, Blood pressure control, Cholesterol management, and Smoking cessation.
• Take a team approach—use technology, standard processes, and the skills of everyone in the healthcare system to find and treat those at risk for heart disease and stroke.
• Make sure people who have had a heart attack or stroke get the care they need to recover well and reduce their risk of another event.
• Promote physical activity and healthy eating among their patients and employees.

* Deaths, hospitalizations, and emergency room visits due to heart attack, stroke, and other cardiovascular conditions like heart failure that could be prevented if Million Hearts 2022 actions are taken.

Heart attacks and strokes are common and preventable.

• More than 1,000 Americans died each day in 2016 from heart attack, stroke, and other events Million Hearts® is trying to prevent.
• Many opportunities to find and treat risk factors are missed every day.

People not taking aspirin as recommended.

People with uncontrolled blood pressure.

Adults not using statins (cholesterol-lowering medicines) when indicated.

Adult smokers.

Adults who are physically inactive.

Populations more at risk.

• Americans aged 35-64 are less likely to use aspirin or statins (cholesterol-lowering medicines) when indicated, and only about half have their blood pressure under control.
• Blacks/African Americans are more likely than whites to develop high blood pressure—especially at earlier ages—and are less likely to have it under control.
• People with mental health and/or substance use disorders use tobacco more frequently.
• People who have already had one heart attack or stroke are at high risk for a second.

Source: Million Hearts® At-A-Glance, 2017

In 2016, about 775,000 hospitalizations and 75,000 deaths occurred in younger Americans, who are America’s workforce, parents, partners, and caregivers.

Getting to One Million

Everyone can take small steps to improve their own health, the health of their families and loved ones, patients, communities, and the heart health of our nation. We have to act now.

View large image and text description

Small changes in every state will have a big impact.

One million events could be prevented by 2022 if every state reduced these life-changing events by 6%.

While rates are higher in the Southeast and Midwest, small changes to improve heart health are needed in all states.

Million Hearts®: Everyone Can Make Small Changes that Matter.

The solution to this crisis is already in front of us. Small changes sustained over time will result in big improvements to the heart health of our nation. Everyone can take action.

Million Hearts® is working with more than 120 partners, all 50 states and the District of Columbia, and 20 federal agencies to:

Keep people healthy by making changes to environments in which people live, learn, work, and play to make it easier to make healthy choices.

HOW: Achieve a 20% reduction in sodium intake, tobacco use, and physical inactivity.

Communities making physical activity easier by creating walking and biking trails.

People adding 10 minutes of physical activity a day—like walking or gardening.

Optimize care so that those at risk for cardiovascular disease get services and skills needed to reduce the risk of having a heart attack or stroke.

• HOW: Achieve 80% performance in the ABCS, and 70% participation in cardiac rehabilitation.
• Insurers providing coverage for home blood pressure monitors.
• Clinicians using a standard treatment protocol for high blood pressure, cholesterol management, and tobacco cessation.

Improve outcomes for priority populations who suffer more from cardiovascular disease and where we know we can make an impact.

• HOW: Employers providing places and time for employees to walk during the workday.
• Behavioral health providers receiving training in smoking cessation and using it in their practice.

We’ve already begun.

Keeping People Healthy.

• Eskenazi Health in Indiana lowered sodium content of foods in all vending machines and cafeterias by 37% with their Choose Health Initiative.

Optimizing Care.

• Over 200 Federally Qualified Health Centers achieved more than 70% performance of the ABCS in 2016 earning a Million Hearts® badge.

Improving Outcomes for Priority Populations—People who have had a heart attack or stroke.

• Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in New Hampshire achieved 80% cardiac rehab enrollment through liaisons who identified eligible patients and connected them to programs.

The Federal Government is:

• Co-leading the Million Hearts® initiative (CDC and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services) to prevent 1 million heart attacks and strokes by 2022. millionhearts.hhs.govExternal
• Helping improve the heart health of millions of Americans by investing in improving delivery of care, including rewarding clinicians for providing care we know works.
• Providing funding and support to all 50 states, the District of Columbia, municipalities, and tribal communities to ensure clinical and public health agencies are working together to prevent heart disease and stroke.

Healthcare Professionals & Systems Can:

• Focus on the ABCS of heart health: Aspirin use when appropriate, Blood pressure control, Cholesterol management, and Smoking cessation.
• Take a team approach—use technology, standard processes, and the skills of everyone in the healthcare system to find and treat those at risk for heart disease and stroke.
• Make sure people who have had a heart attack or stroke get the care they need to recover well and reduce their risk of another event.
• Promote physical activity and healthy eating among their patients and employees.

State And Local Health Departments Can:

• Use their state’s heart disease and stroke events data to drive Million Hearts® actions locally.
• Promote tobacco control interventions, smoke-free environments, and programs to help tobacco users quit.
• Work to improve heart-healthy nutrition and physical activity by promoting the use of healthy food service guidelines and making communities more walkable.

Employers Can:

• Make it easier for employees to get needed medicines, blood pressure monitors, and services by providing insurance coverage with no or low out-of-pocket costs.
• Provide on-site blood pressure monitoring and physical activity programs.
• Ensure smoke-free spaces and access to healthy food and beverages in vending machines and facilities.

Everyone Can:

• Start one heart healthy behavior today – eat a heart-healthy diet, get physically active, or quit smoking! Keep it going to keep your heart healthy now and later in life!
• Learn your heart age and take action to improve it. cdc.gov/heartdisease/heartage.htm
• If you don’t use tobacco, don’t start. If you do, seek help at 1-800-QUIT-NOW or www.smokefree.govExternal.

More information about Million Hearts® and tools you can use are available at millionhearts.hhs.govExternal.

Stories from people who have taken control of their blood pressure are available at https://bit.ly/2N9ahqXExternal.

Related Pages and Resources:

• Vital Signs –Preventing 1 Million Heart Attacks and Strokes [PODCAST – 1:15 minutes]
• Vital Signs –Preventing 1 Million Heart Attacks and Strokes [PSA – 0:60 seconds]
• Vital Signs Issue Details: Vital Signs: Prevalence of Key Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors for Million Hearts 2022 — United States, 2011–2016, Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR)
• State-Level Variation in Nonfatal and Fatal Cardiovascular Events Targeted for Prevention by Million Hearts 2022, Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR)
• Million Hearts®External
• Million Hearts® Partner OpportunitiesExternal
• CDC’s Division for Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention
• CDC Heart Disease
• CDC Stroke
• Vital Signs: Preventing Stroke Deaths
• Best Practices for CVD Prevention
• Interactive Atlas for Heart Disease and Stroke
• Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality: Cardiovascular Disease PreventionExternal
• About the Healthcare Cost and Utilization ProjectExternal
• Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project PartnersExternal
• Community Strategies for Physical Activity
• Smoking and Tobacco Use

Information for Healthcare Professionals

• Actions GuidesExternal: Hypertension Control, Self-Measured Blood Pressure Monitoring, Tobacco Cessation, Medication Adherence
• ProtocolsExternal: Hypertension Treatment, Tobacco Cessation, Cholesterol Management
• Hypertension Change PackageCdc-pdfExternal
• Cardiac Rehabilitation Change PackageExternal
• Hypertension Control ChampionsExternal
• Million Hearts® for Clinicians: Embed Resources on Your Website

 Information for Everyone

• Taking Control of My Blood Pressure: Patient StoriesExternal
• Heart Age Calculator
• Physical Activity for a Healthy Weight
• Tips for Former Smokers®

Other Sites

• MedlinePlus: Heart DiseasesExternal
• MedlinePlus: StrokeExternal
• American Heart AssociationExternal
• American Stroke AssociationExternal

Science Behind the Issue

• Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR)
• Science Clips

• Sudden confusion, trouble speaking or understanding speech
• Sudden trouble seeing in one or both eyes
• Sudden trouble walking, dizziness, loss of balance or coordination
• Sudden severe headache with no known cause

• Manage your diabetes
• Eat right
• Control your high blood pressure
• Exercise
• Don't smoke

• If you have high blood pressure, work with your doctor to get it under control. Many people do not realize they have high blood pressure, which usually produces no symptoms but is a major risk factor for heart disease and stroke. Managing your high blood pressure is the most important thing you can do to avoid stroke.
• If you smoke, quit.
• If you have diabetes, learn how to manage it. As with high blood pressure, diabetes usually causes no symptoms but it increases the chance of stroke.
• If you are overweight, start maintaining a healthy diet and exercising regularly.

Heart Disease: It Can Happen at Any Age

Heart disease doesn’t happen just to older adults. It is happening to younger adults more and more often. This is partly because the conditions that lead to heart disease are happening at younger ages.

February is American Heart Month, the perfect time to learn about your risk for heart disease and the steps you need to take now to help your heart.

Heart disease—and the conditions that lead to it—can happen at any age.

High rates of obesity and high blood pressure among younger people (ages 35–64) are putting them at risk for heart disease earlier in life.

Nearly half of all Americans have at least one of the top three risk factors for heart disease: high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and smoking.1,2

Learn about your risk for heart disease and the steps you need to take now to help your heart.

You Could Be at Risk

Many of the conditions and behaviors that put people at risk for heart disease are appearing at younger ages:

• High blood pressure. Millions of Americans of all ages have high blood pressure, including millions of people in their 40s and 50s. About half of people with high blood pressure don’t have it under control. Having uncontrolled high blood pressure is one of the biggest risks for heart disease and other harmful conditions, such as stroke.
• High cholesterol. High cholesterol can increase the risk for heart disease. Having diabetes and/or obesity, smoking, eating unhealthy foods, and not getting enough physical activity can all contribute to unhealthy cholesterol levels.
• Smoking. More than 35 million U.S. adults are current smokers, and thousands of young people start smoking each day.3,4 Smoking damages the blood vessels and can cause heart disease.

On average, U.S. adults have hearts that are 7 years older than they should be. Watch this video to learn about “heart age.”

Other conditions and behaviors that affect your risk for heart disease include:

• Obesity. Carrying extra weight puts stress on the heart. More than 1 in 3 Americans—and nearly 1 in 6 children and adolescents ages 2 to 19—have obesity.5
• Diabetes causes sugar to build up in the blood. This can damage blood vessels and nerves that help control the heart muscle. More than 1 in 10 people in the United States have diabetes.6
• Physical inactivity. Staying physically active helps keep the heart and blood vessels healthy. Only 1 in 4 adults meet the physical activity guidelines of getting 150 minutes of moderate-intensity activity per week.7
• Unhealthy eating patterns. Most Americans, including children, eat too much sodium (salt), which increases blood pressure.8 Replacing foods high in sodium with fresh fruits and vegetables can help lower blood pressure. Only about 1 in 10 adults get enough fruits and vegetables each day.9,10 A diet high in trans fat, saturated fat, and added sugar increases the risk factor for heart disease.

4 Ways to Take Control of Your Heart Health

You’re in the driver’s seat when it comes to your heart. Learn how to be heart-healthy at any age.

Don’t smoke. Smoking is the leading cause of preventable death in the United States. If you don’t smoke, don’t start. If you do smoke, learn how to quit.

Manage conditions. Work with your health care team to manage conditions such as high blood pressure and high cholesterol. This includes taking any medicines you have been prescribed. Learn more about preventing and managing high blood pressure and high cholesterol.

Make heart-healthy eating changes. Eat food low in trans fat, saturated fat, added sugar, and sodium. Try to fill at least half your plate with vegetables and fruits, and aim for low sodium options. Learn more about how to reduce sodium.

Stay active. Get moving for at least 150 minutes per week.11 You can even break up the exercise into 10-minute blocks for a total of 30 minutes in a day. Learn more about how to get enough physical activity.

More Information

CDC

• Heart Disease
• Vital Signs: Heart Age

National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute

• The Heart Truth®external icon (en españolexternal icon)
• #MoveWithHeart video

American Heart Association

• What is Cardiovascular Disease?external icon
• Tools for Your Heart Healthexternal icon

• Stress
• Social isolation
• Loss of a loved one - this feeling may happen during the holiday season for years after the loss
• Over-commercialization
• Financial stress
• The inability to be with one's family and friends due to COVID-19

• Headaches
• Excessive drinking
• Over-eating
• Insomnia

1. Pray for the stronghold of depression to be lifted.  Let your inner "joy" help you to remember the blessings of life and tomorrow's promise!
2. Make realistic expectations for the holiday season.
3. Cherish the memories you had with loved ones who have passed away, knowing that they are always with you in spirit. 
4. Pace yourself. Do not take on more responsibilities than you can handle.
5. Make a list and prioritize the important activities. This can help make holiday tasks more manageable.
6. Be realistic about what you can and cannot do.
7. Make time for yourself! Try to take at least 30 minutes - 1 hour a day of quiet time to meditate and decompress.
8. Do not put all your energy into just one day (i.e., Thanksgiving Day, New Year's Eve). The holiday cheer can be spread from one holiday event to the next.
9. Live and enjoy the present.
10. Look to the future with optimism.
11. Don't set yourself up for disappointment and sadness by comparing today with the good old days of the past.
12. Find holiday activities that are free, such as looking at holiday decorations, going window shopping without buying, and watching the winter weather, whether it's a snowflake or a raindrop.
13. Limit your drinking, since excessive drinking will only increase your feelings of depression.
14. Try something new. Celebrate the holidays in a new way.
15. Spend time with supportive and caring people.
16. Reach out and make new friends.
17. Make time to contact a long-lost friend or relative and spread some holiday cheer.
18. Donate time or money to organizations that serve holiday meals to those in need.
19. Keep track of your holiday spending. Overspending can lead to depression when the bills arrive after the holidays are over. Extra bills with little budget to pay them can lead to further stress and depression.

20. People change behaviors when there is less sunlight. Most people find they eat and sleep slightly more in wintertime and dislike the dark mornings and short days. For some, however, symptoms are severe enough to disrupt their lives and to cause considerable distress. These people may be suffering from seasonal affective disorder (SAD). 
21. Research studies have that found phototherapy is effective in treating people that suffer from SAD. Phototherapy is a treatment involving about a half hour a day of exposure to artificial sunlight. For many sufferers of SAD, phototherapy can be a highly effective treatment either alone or in combination with medicines, psychotherapy, or both."