NHLBI Comprehensive
Sickle Cell Centers

The Division of Blood Diseases and Resources (DBDR) of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), National Institutes of Health (NIH), supports grants for the Comprehensive Sickle Cell Centers to focus on multi-disciplinary programs of basic, applied, and clinical research, and to include relevant service activities in diagnosis, counseling and education concerning sickle cell disease and related disorders. The NIH established the Comprehensive Sickle Cell Center Program in 1972, in response to a Presidential initiative and Congressional mandate. After an open competition, ten Centers were funded in 1972 and five additional Centers in 1973. Subsequent RFA's were announced in 1976, 1982, 1986, 1991, 1996, and 2001. Ten Comprehensive Sickle Cell Centers are currently funded (as of 4/1/03), and they are: Boston CSCC, Bronx CSCC, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia CSCC, Cincinnati CSCC, Duke-UNC CSCC, Marian Anderson CSCC, Northern California CSCC, St.Jude Children's Research Hospital CSCC, Southwestern CSCC, and University of Southern California CSCC.

Sickle Cell Center grants are identifiable units within sponsoring institutions that are organized around a group of investigators and other health professionals engaged in ongoing basic and clinical research and community service related to sickle cell disease. Centers provide support for multi- disciplinary programs of basic, clinical and behavioral research; for core resources such as laboratory and data analysis; and for quality service activities including diagnosis, counseling, and education.

While a Center must devote its major effort to basic and clinical research, it must also provide supporting activities in diagnosis, education and counseling. It is anticipated that the total program, i.e., all ten Centers combined, will achieve a mix of outstanding projects that are two-thirds research oriented and one-third devoted to supporting activities. The actual balance between research and other activities will vary from Center to Center and will depend on local circumstances and strengths.

Each Comprehensive Sickle Cell Center is headed by a Program Director who is responsible for and provides leadership to all Center components, and who may also be principal investigator on one or more of the projects contained within the Center. Although individual components may enjoy a certain amount of autonomy in the conduct of a specific project, each is directly accountable to the Center Program Director, who has overall responsibility for program coordination, implementation, and evaluation.