Western Kenya leads the country with the most cases of sickle cell disease.
A study conducted by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology (MMUST), shows Western and Coast account for 30 and 20 per cent of all sickle cell cases in the country.
So far, WHO together with MMUST and Ball State University of America have embarked on an awareness creation campaign in a bid to reduce further spread of the disease in the region.
Health sector players converged at Kakamega Golf Hotel yesterday to deliberate on ways to control the disease.
WHO country representative Dr Joyce Nato said Western, Nyanza and the Coast are prone to the disease.
Sickle cell disease is a hereditary blood disorder caused by an abnormality, which affects red blood cells. It is a serious, potentially life-threatening and afflicts one in every 150 babies born, according to experts.
“It is especially high in areas prone to malaria which include the Coast, Western and the lake region,” said Dr Nato.