A beautiful and sweet plush specially for a good cause. Size: 25cm. Every year, three hundred thousand children worldwide are born with sickle cell disease. Without treatment, 75% of these children do not live to be older than five years. In an earlier press release, we announced that miffy has become an ambassador for the Sickle Cell Fund to support the fight against sickle cell disease. As of today (16 March) a major media campaign by the Sickle Cell Fund and miffy will start. Miffy hopes that this attention will make more money available for research into the possibility of curing sickle cell disease. What is sickle cell disease? Sickle cell disease is the most common hereditary blood disorder in the world. In sickle cell disease, the red blood cells, which are normally round, are sickle-shaped or resemble a crescent moon. Hence the name sickle cell disease. Characteristics of the disease are severe anemia, excruciating pain attacks and an increased risk of serious infections. Over time, the organs in the body are irreparably damaged. Worldwide, approximately thirty million people suffer from sickle cell disease. Children come here every year. Without treatment, 75% of these children do not live to be older than five years. Also in the Netherlands there are thousands of patients who need treatment. They can potentially be cured through stem cell transplantation or gene therapy. Scientific research is of great importance for this. Unfortunately, sickle cell disease is relatively unknown, so there are not enough resources available to conduct much-needed groundbreaking research. The Sickle Cell Fund is committed to drawing attention to this disease and miffy wants to help them with this. The proceeds from the sale of this plush miffy will go to the Sickle Cell Fund. For more information: www.sikkelcelfonds.nl/nijntje