Jimi Olaghere thought he would have to wait decades to be freed from his sickle cell disease - but now scientists have engineered his blood to overcome the disease which left him in constant pain.
But the hallmark of sickle cell disease are the severe pain episodes called crises, which need hospital care and morphine to take the pain away. For years, Jimi was in and out of hospital almost every month. Winters were the worst - as cold weather narrows the blood vessels near the skin and increases the risk of blockages. It is why Jimi moved his family across the US - down from New Jersey to the warmer climes of Atlanta, Georgia.The disease has affected every aspect of his life.
"You sit there for eight hours and this machine is literally just sucking all the blood out of you," he said. After we're born, a genetic switch is flipped and we start making adult haemoglobin. Crucially, it's only the adult form of haemoglobin that is affected by sickle cell disease.