The Marian Anderson Sickle Cell Anemia Care and Research Center was established at St. Christopher’s in 1991 to provide acute and routine medical follow-up care, genetic counseling, patient and family education and assistance with school, employment and disability issues for adolescents and young adults.

The Center is one of three regional referral centers licensed by the Pennsylvania Department of Health to treat newborns diagnosed with hemoglobinopathies. It also serves as a regional referral center for the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services. The Center is one of only ten sickle cell programs in the country designated as a Comprehensive Sickle Cell Center by the National Institutes of Health for its excellence in clinical care and research. Active collaborations exist with clinical and research programs at Thomas Jefferson University, Temple University, A.I. DuPont Children’s Hospital, Albert Einstein Medical Center and the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.

Research supporting projects examining the clinical course of infants with sickle cell disease, hemostatic changes during sickle crisis, the pathophysiology of acute chest syndrome and the role of asthma in sickle cell disease is also conducted. Additional projects include developing new bone marrow transplant protocols and testing new medications for the treatment of sickle cell pain.

For appointments please call 215-427-5096 or 215-427-5336.

Lewis Hsu, MD

Interim Director