Abstract

Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) is one of the most prevalent hematological diseases in the world. Despite the immense progress in molecular knowledge about SCD in last years few therapeutical sources are currently available. Nowadays the treatment is performed mainly with drugs such as hydroxyurea or other fetal hemoglobin inducers and chelating agents. This review summarizes current knowledge about the treatment and the advancements in drug design in order to discover more effective and safe drugs. Patient monitoring methods in SCD are also discussed.

Keywords: Drug discovery, hydroxyurea, patient monitoring, sickle cell, sickle cell treatment, new drugs, fetal hemoglobin, chelating agents, gardos channel, poloxamer 188, gene therapy, stem cell transplant, hemoglobin modifiers, nitric oxide