What is the Sickle Cell Disease from The Pitt? Explained

In The Pitt Season 1 Episode 2, sickle cell disease (SCD) is the main focus, as it brings to light the tough medical and racial challenges that people with this illness have to face every day. The show introduces Joyce St. Claire, played by Ashley Romans, a Black woman going through a bad time because of a sickle cell crisis.

When the paramedics first see her, they wrongly think she's just a drug addict until Dr. Samira Mohan, played by Supriya Ganesh, figures out what's going on. This powerful story shows us the pain and confusion that comes with having SCD. Sickle Cell Disease is a genetic blood disorder where abnormal, sickle-shaped red blood cells cause anemia, pain, and organ damage. It mainly affects Black and African American folks.

Sickle cell disease is a pretty big deal in the U.S., with over 100,000 people dealing with it, and those people usually don't live as long as everyone else—about 20 years less, says the CDC.

This article is going to talk more about what the disease is, how it's shown in The Pitt, and the struggles people with SCD go through in society when it comes to getting the right care because of racial bias.

Sickle cell disease causes and symptoms

Sickle cell disease is a blood condition that you get from your parents. It's because of changes in the gene that makes hemoglobin. This makes your red blood cells stiff and shaped like a little sickle. These odd-shaped cells can get stuck in your blood vessels and cause trouble, bad pain, feeling tired, and making it easier to get sick, according to the American Society of Hematology.

This disease hits people from Africa hard, as seen on The Pitt, but it can also show up in folks from places like Spain, Greece, Turkey, the Middle East, and India, and even some from South America, says the University of Pittsburgh on their website.

When you have this disease, you might have your body swell up, grow slower than other kids, and have problems with your eyes. It's tough because it can make you live a shorter life. Sometimes, people with sickle cell disease have their organs stop working properly or get strokes when they're in their 40s or 50s per the CDC.

And here's something important from Dr. Enrico Novelli, an expert on this disease: even if you only have half of the sickle cell gene, called sickle cell trait, you can still get into trouble when you're dehydrated or if you go somewhere high up, like a mountain.

Sickle cell crisis is a reality, as The Pitt shows

Sickle cell crisis is a really intense part of living with Sickle Cell Disease. It happens when your blood cells are shaped like a crescent moon, which is pretty much the opposite of what you want them to look like. These cells get stuck together and block the flow of oxygen to your tissues, which is a big no-no.

Joyce, bless her heart, is going through this right now, and Dr. Mohan says it's like:

“Electrical stabbing pain... like flushing glass through your body.”

People with this condition can get hit with some bad symptoms, like sharp pain in their chest, back, or even their arms and legs, and they might also feel completely wiped out and run a fever. To help them, doctors usually want them to stay hydrated, get some extra oxygen, and sometimes give them strong pain medicine, like opioids - that's what the Cleveland Clinic says.

But here's the sad part, some patients, especially those who are Black, might not get the pain relief they need because of stigma, which makes people think twice about giving or taking those strong medicines, according to the National Library of Medicine.

In The Pitt, the doctors' first impression of Joyce shows that this is a problem that happens a lot in real life, where people might not get the right care because of their race. That affects how healthcare is given, and it's not fair.

Next: The Pitt cast and character guide

The Pitt shows us how sickle cell disease ties into racism

This episode opens our eyes to the deep-rooted biases that make life even tougher for folks with sickle cell disease, or SCD. Joyce's story on The Pitt hits home because it's similar to what many people with this condition go through. In the real world, Black patients often aren't taken as seriously when they're in pain, and doctors might not give them the same meds they'd give to others.

When it comes to racial differences in healthcare, studies have shown that Black patients are often thought to feel less pain and are prescribed painkillers, like opioids, less often than they should be (NLM). Looking back in history, sickle cell started as a way for people in Africa to protect themselves against malaria.

But even though it's closely tied to Black communities, it seems like a lot of doctors aren't as up-to-speed on it as they should be, which only adds to the problem of poor treatment. The show, The Pitt, does a great job highlighting the need for empathy and knowledge in the medical world. The Pitt uses stories like Joyce's to show us how the healthcare system can let people down in a big way.