•Adekunle Gold
Afrobeats singer Adekunle Gold has opened up about his ongoing battle with sickle cell disease, revealing that he still experiences painful crises.
The ‘Coco Money’ crooner, in an interview on RealTalk podcast, said that he was diagnosed with the condition at around 5 or 7 after his mother rushed him to the hospital following a severe episode of pain.
“The first time I noticed that I had it was the night I fell sick and my dad wasn’t home and my mum put me on her back and we walked miles to the hospital. I don’t remember how old I was, maybe like 5 or 7,” he said.
According to him, his parents, both carriers of the sickle cell trait, unknowingly passed it on to him.
“Unfortunately for me, my parents are sickle cell and they brought me to the world. The first time I ever heard of sickle cell was I would fall sick every time with my joints hurting me. So when we talk about crisis, it is pains on your joints, my legs and sometimes stomach. It’s really crazy,” he continued.
Adekunle added that he has been managing the condition with lifelong medication, specifically folic acid and B complex, since his diagnosis.
He said: “That was when the doctor told me about it, and they told me that I will be taking folic acid and B complex for the rest of my life. And that’s my life for a very long time even till now”.
Although he still experiences occasional crises, he noted that they are less severe than in his childhood due to better self-care and access to quality healthcare.
“I still have crises once in a while but not as bad as I had it when I was a child, you know maybe because I have found a way to take care of myself more properly. And I’m grateful to God for the resources to be able to do that,” he stated.
The musician stressed on the importance of genotype testing, particularly for couples planning to have children, to prevent the transmission of the condition.
“Where sickle cell is more popular or where people know it most is my country Nigeria. And it happens when an SS matches an SS. And that’s why knowing your genotype is very important because the point is you should not bring many more kids that have sickle cell”, he said.
He expressed concerns that many Nigerians remain uninformed about sickle cell disease and urges health organisations to intensify awareness campaigns and education.
“My vision is to make more noise about it because a lot of people don’t know about it, and the important organisations are not making so much moves regarding it,” he concluded.
