DISCLAIMER
The information and materials accessed through or made available for use on any of our Sites, including, any information about diseases, conditions, treatments, or medicines, are for informational purposes only. The Content is not intended to be and is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment, and your participation on our Sites does not create a healthcare professional-patient relationship. You should consult a doctor or other qualified health care professional regarding any questions you have about your health or before making any decisions related to your health or wellness. Call your doctor or 911 immediately if you think you may have a medical emergency.compose your message
message sent
email sent successfully
Trusted Resources: News & Events
Latest announcements and gatherings
Shakir Cannon, advocate for minority health, dies
Shakir Lateef Cannon, a 34-year-old advocate for raising awareness of sickle cell disease and improving health disparities affecting minorities, whose efforts took him to the White House in recent years, died Tuesday at Albany Medical Center Hospital, following a sudden respiratory infection, according to his mother.
The respiratory infection was a complication from the sickle cell disease he’d battled all his life, his mother, Cheryl Cannon, said. Shakir, who’d received monthly blood transfusions since having a stroke at age 3, had trouble breathing Sunday night at his home in Clifton Park and was taken by ambulance to Albany Med.
He left behind a wife of six years, Chau Duong Cannon, and their 5-year-old daughter, Kira, as well as parents, a brother and other relatives and friends.
Despite his illness, Cannon lived an active life. His mother said the monthly blood transfusions kept him from suffering in pain as badly as some other children with sickle cell disease, though in his online writings, Shakir describes having pain as an adult and also enduring not only regular transfusions but also nightly infusions to remove iron from his blood.


Related Content
-
education & researchAmerican Society of Hematology 2020 Guidelines for Sickle Cell Disease: Management of Acute and Chronic PainObjective: These evidence-based guideli...
-
education & researchSurvival in Sickle Cell Disease: Data from a Well-Resourced, National Health System SettingBackground: In well-resourced countries,...
-
news & eventsResearchers ID key drivers of heart complications in sickle cell anemiaStudy opens path to earlier diagnosis, t...
-
videos & visualsSickle Cell Disease: Why Is It Hard to Talk About Our Pain?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=63pgiclv...
-
videos & visualsSickle cell and the kidneyhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iK2aLzlc...
-
news & eventsHydroxyurea Treatment in Men with SCA Leads to Drop in Total Sperm Count, Study ShowsResearchers found that treatment with hy...
-
videos & visualsPreventing Strokes in Children with Sickle Cell Diseasehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k6h7cb7S...
send a message
To improve your experience on this site, we use cookies. This includes cookies essential for the basic functioning of our website, cookies for analytics purposes, and cookies enabling us to personalize site content. By clicking on 'Accept' or any content on this site, you agree that cookies can be placed. You may adjust your browser's cookie settings to suit your preferences. More Information
The cookie settings on this website are set to "allow cookies" to give you the best browsing experience possible. If you continue to use this website without changing your cookie settings or you click "Accept" below then you are consenting to this.
Support for this site is provided by

This platform is made possible through a partnership with the Sickle Cell Disease Association of America, Inc. (SCDAA) and its member organizations. SCDAA's mission is to advocate for people affected by sickle cell conditions and empower community-based organizations to maximize quality of life and raise public consciousness while advancing the search for a universal cure.