The purpose of the service is to provide technical and scientific support to UK Sickle Cell and Thalassaemia screening service via email and telephone advice lines and teaching/training days. The service is commissioned by the National Sickle Cell and Thalassaemia Screening Programme.
Who can access the service?
Most inquiries come from staff in haemoglobinopathy screening laboratories, but we are also very happy to answer queries from any other health professional requiring advice interpreting haemoglobinopathy laboratory results.
Things the service can help with
We can try to help with all aspects of the laboratory diagnosis of haemoglobinopathy (see FAQs below) but areas we are often asked about include:
More details about the service and how it can be accessed can be obtained from the Sickle Cell and Thalassaemia screening programme website at www.sct.screening.nhs.uk/.
The lab support service can be contacted via email at lab.support@nhs.net or by phone on 01865 572769.
Some reference materials can be found below:
Frequently Asked Questions (updated 2019)
Reasons for differing Haemoglobin variant percentage results in carriers
Elevated HbF levels - short notes