What are cyanate and thiocyanate? can they be used to treat sickle cell anemia?

Ask ur Hematologist: Dietary cyanate, from foods containing cyanide derivatives, has been used as a treatment for sickle- cell anemia. In the laboratory, cyanate and thiocyanate irreversibly inhibit sickling of red blood cells drawn from sickle cell anemia patients. However, the cyanate would have to be administered to the patient for a lifetime, as each new red blood cell created must be prevented from sickling.

No: Cyanate and thiocyanate should not be used to treat sickle cell anemia. Patients with sickle cell disease are treated with hydroxyurea. For younger patients they should be treated with stem cell transplantation and they will be cured. Gene therapy, a technique in which normal genes are implanted in precursor cells (cells that produce blood cells), is being studied.