July 20th 2023.
Hanif Mouehla was only eight years old when he was diagnosed with sickle cell disease. Now seventeen, he has been inspired to care for others like him and is headed to Harvard University to study pre-med. With a strong focus on medicine since a young age, Mouehla is determined to become a hematologist and help others facing this deadly disease.
Mouehla's survival story began when he found himself in ICU at Maria Fareri Children's Hospital in New York. His condition was worsening and doctors placed him in a coma after both of his lungs collapsed. He spent six weeks in the hospital and doctors weren't sure if he would make it, giving him only a 20% chance. However, an experimental stem cell transplant would save him and give him a new perspective on life.
Ten years later, he reconnected with the pediatric hematology-oncology specialist who treated him, Dr. Mitchell Cairo. In 2022, Mouehla worked in Cairo's research lab to find a cure for sickle cell. Fortunately, Mouehla is currently free of the disease after receiving the familial haploidentical stem cell transplant from his mother, Khuraira Musa.
Sickle cell affects an estimated 70,000 to 100,000 Americans with 1 in 13 African-Americans diagnosed each year. Dr. Cairo expressed his admiration for Mouehla and his determination to make a difference in the lives of the next generation. He said, "It's kind of an indescribable feeling because, on top of seeing somebody sort of just resume their normal life, they're now kicking into high gear and taking on additional stress to make a difference for the next generation."
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