'As a child I couldn't play in the snow or have a cold drink, now I dream of going to the North Pole'
manchestereveningnews.co.ukAs her friends played happily in the snow as children, Gloria Adebisi Ademolu couldn't join in with them and had to stay indoors.
She couldn't even sip a cold drink. Diagnosed with sickle cell disease, the condition meant she couldn't do a lot of things others did growing up due to her weakened immune system making her highly susceptible to illness.
Gloria, now aged 26, has always held a love of winter and snow. And now she's told how she plans to revive a childhood dream of visiting the North Pole, all thanks to new NHS treatment she's receiving in Manchester. "For people with sickle cell, our immune system is really bad," said Gloria, who lives with her family in Manchester city centre. "I couldn't do a lot of things growing up. READ MORE: Video shows cars flying past as pedestrian waits at new zebra crossing "Now I'm not as tired as I used to be and I don't feel as much pain - I can tell because I don't take as much pain medication as I used to.
I have more energy to do things, I feel more energized to go out. I don't have to stay in bed all day. "The best thing is now I can say, 'okay, now I can start living a life that I actually do want to live without fear of my condition triggering itself'." Sickle cell disease is a life-long health condition that affects the red blood cells.
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