NIH Hydroxyurea Treatment For Sickle Cell Disease Conference, Feb. 25-27

For many patients, the pain and complications associated with sickle cell disease can have a profound impact on their quality of life, ability to work, and long-term health and well-being. Unfortunately, these challenges are often coupled with significant barriers to care. Hydroxyurea is an FDA-approved therapy for adults with certain forms of sickle cell disease, and acts to increase the percentage of non-sickled red blood cells in circulation. However, concerns remain for both physicians and patients. The conference panel will examine these issues in detail at the upcoming conference, resulting in a summary of what we know and what we need to learn about hydroxyurea treatment for sickle cell disease.

What

Experts will describe the available evidence on hydroxyurea treatment for sickle cell disease, including efficacy, effectiveness, harms, barriers to treatment, and future research needs. Following a series of scientific presentations and open public discussions, an impartial, independent panel will issue a statement of its findings on the final day of the conference, and will hold a press conference at 2:00 p.m. on Wednesday, February 27. Convened by the Office of Medical Applications of Research (OMAR) and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) of the NIH, this conference is free and open to the public and the media.

The conference presentations, open discussions, and the panel's statement will focus on these questions:

1. What is the efficacy (results from clinical studies) of hydroxyurea treatment for patients who have sickle cell disease in three groups: infants, preadolescents, and adolescents/adults?

2. What is the effectiveness (in everyday practice) of hydroxyurea treatment for patients who have sickle cell disease?

3. What are the short- and long-term harms of hydroxyurea treatment?

4. What are the barriers to hydroxyurea treatment for patients who have sickle cell disease and what are the potential solutions?

5. What are the future research needs?

When

Monday, February 25, 2008 - 8:30 am - 5:30 pm
Tuesday, February 26, 2008 - 8:30 am - 12:00 pm
Wednesday, February 27, 2008 - 9:00 am - 11:00 am
Press Conference: Wednesday, February 27, 2:00 p.m.

Where

Natcher Conference Center
NIH Main Campus - Building 45
9000 Rockville Pike
Bethesda, Maryland 20892