A new treatment has been recommended in the UK for sickle-cell disease

The UK’s National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), this week, has recommended Crizanlizumab, a medicine developed by Novartis pharmaceutical company, as a treatment for preventing recurrent pain crises in individuals aged 16 or over living with sickle cell disease.

The treatment, which was first approved in the US in 2019, is the first new treatment in 20 years for the disease on the UK’s National Health Service, according to NICE.

Sickle cell is an inherited disease and blood disorder resulting from red blood cells that become sickle-shaped, often clumping, and blocking small blood vessels in the body, hindering blood, and oxygen flow. This results in severe pain in episodes known as crises. Crizanlizumab is delivered using a transfusion drip and prevents these crises by binding to a protein in the blood cells. The treatment reduces pain crises in sickle cell patients by 45%

Read the rest of this story on qz.com. Become a member to get unlimited access to Quartz’s journalism.