'It's in the genes': How sickle cell disease silently lurks across generations

 SCD is a genetic condition that is present from birth and inherited.[iStockphoto]

When Beryl Oyugi welcomed her second child into the world, she had no reason to believe that a hidden gene passed down through generations would change her family’s life forever.

Like many young mothers, she expected the usual challenges of parenthood, feeding, school fees, childhood illnesses and raising healthy children. Instead, she found herself navigating a painful journey of hospital visits, blood transfusions, medication schedules, emotional stress and difficult conversations about genetics that she had never been taught before marriage.