Shamonica Wiggins is a 30-year-old sickle cell warrior and a native of Dallas, TX. Although she has sickle cell SS, which is commonly referred to as the most critical form of the illness, she rarely allows it to get in the way of her chasing her dreams. This is evident in the work she did as creator and former CEO of the non-profit organization, #BoldLipsForSickleCell. Shamonica was awarded the 2018 National Sickle Cell Advocate of the Year by Sickle Cell 101. Ms. Wiggins is a trailblazer in the sickle cell community and strives to be a voice of one, speaking for many. When she's not busy fulfilling her passion of spreading sickle cell awareness you can find her on the sidelines of the soccer field cheering on her 8-year-old daughter Roree. Shamonica prides herself as a mother and her daughter is a big reason why she refuses to give up. She hopes that her advocacy work leads to a big breakthrough for the sickle cell community and she's not going to stop being a voice for her people until she see the changes that sickle cell warriors so desperately need. Online profile

Arafa is the embodiment of a true sickle cell advocate. As founder of the Sickle Cell Disease Patients Community of Tanzania, Arafa has invested over 7 years on heavily crusading against the misinterpretation and misinformation surrounding the disease. Under her leadership, the Sickle Cell Disease Patients Community of Tanzania has organized fundraising events, hospitals and school visits, charity walks, and blood donation events. One can find Arafa educating and supporting the sickle cell community across various social media platforms, participating and engaging sickle cell community members in Q&A and group sessions on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and WhatsApp. Ms. Arafa Said is a young lady who has not only publicly volunteered in hospital for sickle cell condition but also has managed at large to bring about the awareness about SCD in the country through her own initiatives. She has helped the society at the same time encouraging families not be ashamed of the SCD and advised them to take gene tests for SCD within their families, spouses, children etc. Her efforts have open up new thinking and positive attitude among people on awareness and education on SCD. Online profile

Adrienne is a fourth generation of mothers in her family to have a child born with Sickle Cell Disease. She was one of the first supporters of the work done by Dr. Kohn in bone marrow and later stem cell transplants. As a true believer that science would cure Sickle Cell Disease, she has dedicated a large portion of her life to improving the lives and overall healthcare of those living with the disease. In the past three years, she has found her voice as a Stem Cell Activist. Speaking in support of the funding for medical trails through CIRM, her experience includes attending educational conferences and seminars, as well as meeting with Southern California Congress members to lobby for the support and passage of the Sickle Cell Education Act. Online profile

Michael R. DeBaun is the professor of Pediatrics, Vice Chair for clinical and translational research and the JC Peterson Endowed Chair in the Department of Pediatrics. He is a leading expert in the care of children with sickle cell disease and directs the newly established Vanderbilt-Meharry Center for Excellence in Sickle Cell Disease. DeBaun's research focuses on understanding cerebrovascular injury in children with sickle cell disease, and improving management of their care. His efforts also aim to better define the impact and biological mechanisms by which asthma increases sickle cell disease morbidity and mortality. He is now leading an international collaboration to develop the first longitudinal cohort of children with sickle cell anemia who have been evaluated with repeated pulmonary function tests and sleep studies.   Representative Publications: Asthma morbidity and treatment in children with sickle cell disease Cerebral hemodynamic assessment and neuroimaging across the lifespan in sickle cell disease Controlled trial of transfusions for silent cerebral infarcts in sickle cell anemia Elevated tricuspid regurgitant jet velocity, reduced forced expiratory volume in 1 second, and mortality in adults with sickle cell disease Enuresis associated with sleep disordered breathing in children with sickle cell anemia Evolution of sickle cell disease from a life-threatening disease of children to a chronic disease of adults: The last 40 years Factors predicting future ACS episodes in children with sickle cell anemia   Online profile

Laura M. De Castro MD, MHSc, is an Associate Professor of Medicine and Director of Benign Hematology for the Institute for Transfusion Medicine and UPMC Cancer Center. In addition, she is a hematologist specializing in sickle cell disease and other hemoglobinopathies. Dr. De Castro also serves as Clinical Director of the Benign Hematology Program at UPMC, and works to expand clinical programs in hemostasis and thrombosis.Dr. De Castro received her medical degree from the Universidad Autónoma de Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic. She completed her Internal Medicine Residency at the Montefiore Medical Center, Albert Einstein School of Medicine in New York, and her hematology/oncology fellowship at Yale University in New Haven, CT. Representative Publications:Efficacy and safety of the Gardos channel blocker, senicapoc (ICA-17043), in patients with sickle cell anemiaMorbidity associated with sickle cell disease in pregnancyNeuropsychological dysfunction and neuroimaging abnormalities in neurologically intact adults with sickle cell anemiaSurgical and obstetric outcomes in adults with sickle cell diseaseFactors associated with survival in a contemporary adult sickle cell disease cohortIndications and Results of HLA-Identical Sibling Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation for Sickle Cell DiseaseUsability and Feasibility of an mHealth Intervention for Monitoring and Managing Pain Symptoms in Sickle Cell Disease: The Sickle Cell Disease Mobile Application to Record Symptoms via Technology (SMART) Online profile

Dr. Joshua Field is an Associate Medical Director at the Blood Center of Wisconsin and an Associate Professor of Medicine in the Division of Hematology and Oncology at the Medical College of Wisconsin. Dr. Field specializes in the treatment of sickle cell disease and other benign hematological disorders at Froedtert Hospital. Dr. Field graduated medical school from the University of Iowa. He completed an internal medicine residency and fellowships in hematology and transfusion medicine at Washington University in St. Louis, where he was chief resident in internal medicine and chief fellow in hematology and oncology. Dr. Field is board certified in transfusion medicine and hematology. He conducts clinical and translational research studies in adults with sickle cell disease.   Representative Publications: Environmental tobacco smoke and airway obstruction in children with sickle cell anemia Maternal opioid dose is associated with neonatal abstinence syndrome in children born to women with sickle cell disease Older red cell units are associated with an increased incidence of infection in chronically transfused adults with sickle cell disease NNKTT120, an anti-iNKT cell monoclonal antibody, produces rapid and sustained iNKT cell depletion in adults with sickle cell disease Sickle solubility test to screen for sickle cell trait: what's the harm? Opioid management strategy decreases admissions in high-utilizing adults with sickle cell disease Online profile