Tatyana Thompson, 32, was diagnosed with sickle cell disease as an infant and endured a lifetime of debilitating pain crises — including during her pregnancy. Now, thanks to a pioneering half-match bone marrow transplant, she is completely cured and raising her child pain-free. Her case is transforming treatment pathways for millions worldwide.

A Lifetime of Pain

Sickle cell disease is an inherited blood disorder that causes red blood cells to become rigid and sickle-shaped, blocking blood flow and causing excruciating pain episodes known as "crises." For Tatyana, these crises were a constant companion — sometimes landing her in hospital for days at a time.

During her pregnancy, the disease was particularly brutal. The increased demands on her body triggered severe pain episodes, and doctors had to carefully manage both her sickle cell disease and the health of her unborn baby. "There were times I didn't think I could do it," Tatyana said. "The pain was beyond anything I could describe."

The Half-Match Breakthrough

Traditional bone marrow transplants require a fully matched donor — typically a sibling — which means only about 20% of sickle cell patients have access to a potential cure. The odds are even worse for patients of African descent, who make up the vast majority of those affected by the disease.

The pioneering procedure Tatyana received uses a "half-match" or haploidentical donor — meaning only half of the donor's tissue markers need to match the patient's. This dramatically expands the pool of eligible donors. A parent, child, or half-matched sibling can now potentially save a life.

Doctors used a carefully calibrated regimen of chemotherapy to prepare Tatyana's body, followed by the transplant of donor stem cells. Over the following weeks, the healthy donor cells gradually replaced her sickle-shaped cells with normal, round red blood cells.

"I Feel Like a Different Person"

Six months after the transplant, tests confirmed what Tatyana already felt in her body: the sickle cell disease was gone. Completely. Her blood now produces only healthy red blood cells.

"I wake up every morning and I don't hurt. I can play with my baby without worrying about ending up in hospital. I feel like an entirely different person." — Tatyana Thompson

Her doctors say the results are remarkable. The half-match approach achieved a complete cure with manageable side effects — a result that was considered nearly impossible just a decade ago.

Hope for Millions

Sickle cell disease affects approximately 100,000 Americans and millions more worldwide, with the highest prevalence in sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East, and South Asia. It is one of the most common inherited blood disorders on the planet.

Until recently, the only proven cure was a bone marrow transplant from a fully matched sibling donor — an option available to fewer than one in five patients. Gene therapies like Casgevy and Lyfgenia, approved in late 2023, offer another path, but their extraordinary cost (over $2 million per treatment) puts them out of reach for most patients globally.

The half-match transplant approach could change that equation entirely. By widening the donor pool to include parents, children, and half-matched relatives, it makes a cure accessible to the vast majority of patients — at a fraction of the cost of gene therapy.

What This Means

Medical teams across the United States are now working to expand access to half-match transplants for sickle cell patients. Clinical trials are underway at multiple centres, and early results are consistently promising.

For Tatyana, the future is brighter than she ever imagined. She's raising her child, working, and living a life free from the shadow of sickle cell disease for the first time since she was born.

"I want every person with sickle cell to know there's real hope now," she said. "A cure exists. It's not a dream any more."

Source: TODAY.com