环球英语 — 195：Sickle Cell Anemia

　　Voice 1
Thank you for joining us for today’s Spotlight¹, I’m Joshua Leo.
Voice 2
And I’m Liz Waid. Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.
Voice 1
When you look for a person to marry, what qualities do you look for? Do you want that person to be good looking? Or do you want a person who is intelligent? Or funny?
Voice 2
Would you ever ask that person about their blood? Would you ask if they know what genes³ their parents passed to them? Della Seneadza is from Ghana. When he thinks about beginning a relationship, these are the first things he wants to know! You see, Della has a blood disorder⁴. It is called Sickle⁵ Cell Anemia⁶. And he wants to protect his future children from the disease.
Voice 1
Today’s Spotlight is on Sickle Cell Anemia.
Voice 2
Sickle Cell Anemia is a disease that causes great pain. It can also cause breathing problems. And it may turn a person’s skin yellow. In rare cases, it can lead to death.
Voice 1
Sickle Cell Anemia affects a protein in the red blood cells. This protein is called haemoglobin. A person with Sickle Cell Anemia has bad haemoglobin. This causes the red blood cells to change shape. They become thin and curved instead of round. They become hard instead of soft. They become firm instead of bendable. And they become sticky.
Voice 2
Bad haemoglobin also causes red blood cells to die more quickly than healthy red blood cells. A healthy red blood cell will live about four [4] months. But a sick red blood cell will only live ten [10] to twenty [20] days!
Voice 1
The red blood cells carry oxygen. They bring oxygen to every part of the body through the system of veins⁸. These are like long thin tubes. Usually, a red blood cell can flow easily through veins. But Sickle Cell Anemia causes the red blood cells to stick together. Then, they can block small veins. When a vein⁷ is blocked, oxygen cannot get to some parts of the body. This causes a person to feel severe pain.
Voice 2
A time of severe pain like this is called a crisis⁹. Sometimes a crisis is brief. But other times it can last hours, days, or even weeks! Sometimes the pain can be treated at home. At other times a person must go to the hospital.
Voice 1
There is very little doctors can do for Sickle Cell Anemia. They cannot make the disease go away. But they can treat the bad effects of the disease. Doctors treat the pain with pain medicines. Visiting the hospital often can also help. Then, doctors can make sure that a person is healthy. Together, medicines and hospital visits can manage the disease.
Voice 2
People with Sickle Cell Anemia also get sick easier than people with healthy red blood cells. And it is more difficult for them to get better. So doctors give people penicillin¹⁰ or other medicines to prevent other sicknesses.
Voice 1
Sadly, there is no cure for Sickle Cell Anemia. Della and most other people with Sickle Cell Anemia learn they have the disease when they are young.
Voice 3
“The first painful [crisis] came when I was seven [7] years old. I was reading...after school and I felt severe pains in my back. It was so bad. I ran to my mother crying.”
Voice 2
Each crisis interferes¹¹ with a person’s life. If the pain is severe, it can prevent a person from going to work or school. Sufferers cannot do things that require lots of physical energy. Della enjoys playing sports. But he has learned to stop when he feels tired. He has also learned to enjoy other things.
Voice 3
“[Instead of] excelling¹² physically¹³ outdoors, I stay in and think creatively. I write music and come up with program ideas. I use my mind [instead of] my body.”
Voice 1
There is no cure for Sickle Cell Anemia. But it can be prevented. You see, Sickle Cell Anemia is a hereditary¹⁴ disease. It is in the genes that parents pass to their children. This disease cannot be passed in any other way.
Voice 2
Della has Sickle Cell Anemia. So he knows that he will pass the gene² to his children. But a child must get a Sickle Cell gene from both parents in order to have the disease. This is why Della asks a girl if she has been tested!
Voice 3
“Now that I am older I [understand] the [importance] of people’s blood types. When I enter into a new relationship, she must be completely free from Sickle Cell Anemia. [This is] to prevent the cycle from happening again.”
Voice 1
Not everyone with the Sickle Cell Anemia gene will have the disease. It is possible to be a carrier of the gene. A carrier has the disease from just one of his parents. A carrier will not suffer from the disease. But he could still pass it on to his children. By taking a simple blood test, a person can find out if they carry the gene that causes Sickle Cell Anemia.
Voice 2
For example, Della will pass the Sickle Cell gene to his child. But imagine that his future wife does not carry the gene. Then his child will only be a carrier of Sickle Cell. The child would not have Sickle Cell Anemia.
Voice 1
Now imagine that his future wife is a carrier of the sickle cell gene. She does not have Sickle Cell Anemia. But there is a good chance she will pass on the sickle cell gene. This also means that Della’s child has a very good chance of having Sickle Cell Anemia.
Voice 2
Janet Campbell is the director of the Sickle Cell Society. She agrees that it is important for people to get their blood tested.
Voice 4
“There are seventeen thousand five hundred [17,500] [people] in the United Kingdom with Sickle Cell, but [there is] double that number...of carriers. You can be a silent carrier so getting tested is important. We are encouraging people to be tested so they can look after the health of their own bodies.”
Voice 1
Sickle Cell Anemia affects people all over the world. It is common among people who at some time had relatives in Africa, the Caribbean, or Asia. But it can affect anyone, no matter where they are from!
Voice 2
Mrs. Shasanya did not know she and her husband carried the sickle cell gene. She discovered it when doctors said that her daughter had Sickle Cell Anemia. Now she meets many parents who have more than one child with Sickle Cell Anemia. But she says many people do not get help. They are afraid it will bring shame to their families.
Voice 1
Many people lack knowledge about the disease. Some people even have bad ideas about people with the disease. And often, people do not like to talk about it. This makes it difficult for people to get help.
Voice 2
But it is not possible to catch Sickle Cell Anemia. There is nothing to be afraid of. Della says,
Voice 3
“Most of the time, I see myself as a human being, rather than a sickle cell sufferer.”
 

1 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
• The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。

2 gene   

n.遗传因子，基因

参考例句：

• A single gene may have many effects.单一基因可能具有很多种效应。
• The targeting of gene therapy has been paid close attention.其中基因治疗的靶向性是值得密切关注的问题之一。

3 genes   

n.基因( gene的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• You have good genes from your parents, so you should live a long time. 你从父母那儿获得优良的基因，所以能够活得很长。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Differences will help to reveal the functions of the genes. 它们间的差异将会帮助我们揭开基因多种功能。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 生物技术的世纪

4 disorder   

n.紊乱，混乱；骚动，骚乱；疾病，失调

参考例句：

• When returning back,he discovered the room to be in disorder.回家后，他发现屋子里乱七八糟。
• It contained a vast number of letters in great disorder.里面七零八落地装着许多信件。

5 sickle   

n.镰刀

参考例句：

• The gardener was swishing off the tops of weeds with a sickle.园丁正在用镰刀嗖嗖地割掉杂草的顶端。
• There is a picture of the sickle on the flag. 旗帜上有镰刀的图案。

6 anemia   

n.贫血，贫血症

参考例句：

• The doctors analyzed the blood sample for anemia. 医生们分析了贫血的血样。
• I was put on iron tablets for my anemia.我曾因贫血吃补铁药片。

7 vein   

n.血管，静脉；叶脉，纹理；情绪；vt.使成脉络

参考例句：

• The girl is not in the vein for singing today.那女孩今天没有心情唱歌。
• The doctor injects glucose into the patient's vein.医生把葡萄糖注射入病人的静脉。

8 veins   

n.纹理；矿脉( vein的名词复数 )；静脉；叶脉；纹理

参考例句：

• The blood flows from the capillaries back into the veins. 血从毛细血管流回静脉。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I felt a pleasant glow in all my veins from the wine. 喝过酒后我浑身的血都热烘烘的，感到很舒服。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 crisis   

n.危机，危急关头，决定性时刻，关键阶段

参考例句：

• He had proved that he could be relied on in a crisis.他已表明，在紧要关头他是可以信赖的。
• The topic today centers about the crisis in the Middle East.今天课题的中心是中东危机。

10 penicillin   

n.青霉素，盘尼西林

参考例句：

• I should have asked him for a shot of penicillin.我应当让他给我打一针青霉素的。
• Penicillin was an extremely significant medical discovery.青霉素是极其重要的医学发现。

11 interferes   

vi. 妨碍，冲突，干涉

参考例句：

• The noise interferes with my work. 这噪音妨碍我的工作。
• That interferes with my plan. 那干扰了我的计划。

12 excelling   

优于，擅长( excel的现在分词 )； 胜过平时

参考例句：

• The rockery in the park is of wonderful workmanship excelling nature. 公园里的假山巧夺天工。
• Dukakis has a history of enduring, even excelling at, hardball campaigns. 杜卡基斯一向能承受，甚至擅长选举硬仗。

13 physically   

adj.物质上，体格上，身体上，按自然规律

参考例句：

• He was out of sorts physically,as well as disordered mentally.他浑身不舒服，心绪也很乱。
• Every time I think about it I feel physically sick.一想起那件事我就感到极恶心。

14 hereditary   

adj.遗传的，遗传性的，可继承的，世袭的

参考例句：

• The Queen of England is a hereditary ruler.英国女王是世袭的统治者。
• In men,hair loss is hereditary.男性脱发属于遗传。