News Coverage
Sickle Cell Prodigy’s Co-founder is a leading voice in the global sickle cell community — a patient advocate, storyteller, and transplant survivor redefining what it means to thrive beyond treatment. Her work has been featured across major media outlets, health platforms, and advocacy networks that spotlight innovation, resilience, and the patient experience.
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Through interviews, op-eds, and guest appearances, she continues to elevate the conversation around survivorship, equitable access to care, and the future of transformative therapies for sickle cell disease.​
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Published June 18, 2025
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The article highlights the lives of Black men living with sickle cell disease (SCD) in the U.S., focusing especially on how they carry the weight of chronic illness while also fulfilling the roles of fathers, providers, and protectors. It explores how those roles conflict with the daily realities of SCD—pain, disability, stigma, and systemic bias in healthcare.
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The article profiles Wunmi Bakare — founder of Sickle Cell Prodigy and public relations executive — and highlights her journey as a sickle cell advocate. It recounts her medical history: diagnosed with sickle cell disease as a baby, undergoing major treatments throughout her life, and in particular undergoing a stem cell transplant in 2019 at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.
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The article promotes the #ThroughTheGenes podcast, which explores the lived experiences of patients who participated in Gene therapy and bone marrow transplant, a treatment option for people with sickle cell disease. The podcast also explores the risks, benefits, and limitations of gene and cell-based therapies so people with sickle cell can make informed decisions about their treatment options.
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The article features Wunmi Bakare, a Seattle-based woman living with sickle cell disease, who is working to raise awareness around the illness. She was diagnosed at 18 months old, and throughout her life has lived with frequent pain episodes, strokes, and complications involving her liver, heart, and other organs. ​Her advocacy is motivated by both her lived experience and the perception of stigma—she wants to humanize the disease, break down misconceptions, and increase awareness and funding.
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During National Sickle Cell Awareness Month, Wunmi Bakare—PR professional, advocate, and post-transplant survivor—amplifies the voices of those living with sickle cell disease. After a life-threatening infection in 2017 inspired her advocacy, she now drives awareness through her YouTube series Diary of a Sickle Cell Prodigy, media interviews, and NIH collaborations, emphasizing storytelling to advance understanding and future cures.