About the Sickle Cell and Red Cell Disorders Curative Therapy Center (CuRED)

The Sickle Cell and Red Cell Disorders Curative Therapy Center (CuRED) at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) was designed to better support the patient and family through a streamlined care model. We offer a multidisciplinary CuRED Clinic for evaluation and treatment of children with sickle cell disease, beta thalassemia and other red cell disorders, and a robust research program that is on the cutting edge of the field.

CuRED Clinic

The CuRED Clinic brings together a team of pediatric specialists with expertise in every aspect of the care of children with red cell disorders.

Coordinated care is provided by hematology, stem cell transplant, cardiology, pulmonology, neurology, general surgery, orthopedics, and radiology. This collaborative approach:

• Streamlines the care experience: Patients will require fewer appointments by combining multiple evaluations into one clinic visit.
• Improves outcomes: Barriers to accessing treatment will be reduced by simplifying the process for families.
• Supports patients on the path to a cure: An integrated team can better identify patients who may benefit from stem cell transplant or gene therapy, educate those patients and their families about these curative options, and improve the experience of pursuing a cure, which requires multiple steps over many months.

The clinic draws on the expertise of four CHOP programs that have long been critical to the care of children with red blood cell disorders:

• The Comprehensive Sickle Cell Center (CSCC) is one of the largest pediatric sickle cell centers in the nation, providing care for over 1,000 children, adolescents and young adults. The CSCC collaborates with the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and Pennsylvania Hospital in the care of an additional 400 adult patients.
• The Thalassemia Program provides comprehensive care to patients with thalassemia syndromes, including those with transfusion-dependent beta thalassemia (BT). It partners with the Adult Thalassemia Program at Penn in providing care to adults with severe BT.
• The Cell Therapy and Transplant Section (CTTS) has developed innovative stem cell therapies to cure pediatric patients with cancer and severe non-malignant diseases.
• The Fertility Preservation Program provides fertility consults across the institution, allowing for risk-based counseling and facilitation of fertility preservation options (both standard care and experimental).

“It is a blessing to know that there is a curative path available to my child. We have hope at CHOP and it just brings tears to my eyes.”

Our Research

CuRED is leveraging CHOP’s world-class translational research expertise and resources in gene therapy. The mission is to further advance the field of curative therapies for red blood cell disorders. Our physician-scientists are at the top of their fields, contributing significant breakthroughs that will lead to more cures for patients who once had just one option: spend a lifetime managing their chronic disease.