| October 7, 2021 Della White, Ph.D. The Helping to End Addiction Long-termSMInitiative, or NIH HEAL InitiativeSM, has released notices of two upcoming funding opportunity announcements (FOAs) to support large-scale clinical trials on sickle cell disease (SCD) pain management. The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) will lead this program with partnership of nine NIH Institutes, Centers, and Offices. The funding opportunities are expected to support up to three large-scale trials. Sickle Cell Disease Is an Urgent Research Priority About 100,000 Americans, primarily African Americans, have SCD, an inherited lifelong illness in which abnormally shaped red blood cells block normal blood flow, leading to serious health problems. The most common complication of SCD is pain, including severe acute pain episodes, chronic persistent pain, and neuropathic pain. Current approaches for managing SCD pain are inadequate. Often, treatment doesnt address comorbidities that may exacerbate pain, and even after curative therapy, severe chronic pain may persist. Moreover, structural barriers, including stigma and racism, have often prevented patients from receiving optimal care. |
