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Vence L. Bonham of the National InstitutesofHealth’sNationalHu- man Genome Research Institute. “Getting it right is important, es- pecially this one being the first one out of the gate.” Although endorsed by some


doctors, sports officials, athletes andparents, the testinghas raised objections from both the Sickle CellAnemiaAssociationofAmeri- ca anda federalpanel that advises the government on issues related to genetic testing. “We’re very concerned that


identifying someone as a carrier could be discriminatory,” said R. Rodney Howell, who chairs the Health and Human Services De- partment’s Advisory Committee on Heritable Disorders in New- borns and Children, which sent a letter to HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius in June expressing con- cern about the program. “There is noneed to single out this group.” TheNational Collegiate Athlet-


ic Associationmandated the test- ing in April in response to a law- suit filed by the family of Dale Lloyd II, a 19-year-old African American freshman at Rice Uni- versity who died after an intense footballworkout in 2006 andwas later discovered to have had the sickle cell trait. “We want to prevent this from


happening to anyone else,” said Lloyd’smother,Bridgette Lloyd of Houston. “Coaches and trainers need this knowledge. We don’t wantanotheryoungpersontolose their lifebecause of a lackof infor- mation.” Under the policy, as ofAug. 1 all


new students joining NCAA Divi- sion I teams, regardless of race, must be tested for the sickle cell trait — a requirement affecting about 170,000 student-athletes. No one will be excluded from sports or restricted in training or playing based on the results, offi- cials said. Rather, athletes who test positive will be conditioned more carefully andwatchedmore closely to ensure they drink enough and avoid overexertion, especially on hot days and in high altitudes. The NCAA is consider- ing expanding the testing to Divi- sion II and III players, which would extend the order to about 260,000more students. “We’re trying to protect the


health and well-being of our stu- dent athletes,” said Yvette Rooks, theUniversity ofMaryland’s team physician, who served on the NCAA committee that recom- mended the policy. “One death is too many. Anything we can do to prevent it and help people be healthier is important.” Sickle cell anemia creates sick-


le-shaped red blood cells, which block vessels, causing chronic


SHARON STEINMANN/HOUSTON CHRONICLE


Teammates carried the coffin of Dale Lloyd II, the RiceUniversity player who died during a workout. While acknowledging that the


problems with intense pain, life- threatening infections and organ damage. A person born with two copies


of the gene gets the illness. People who carry only one — known as having the sickle cell trait — are generally healthy. But during highly stressful physical exertion their blood cells can become sick- le-shaped,preventingthedelivery of oxygen to tissues and organs. Since2000,asmanyas 10Division I college football playerswho had the trait without knowing it have died suddenly following work- outs. “There have been players who


ceaseactivityonahotdaybecause ofcomplaintsof fatigue—theyare sweating heavily and cramping and not understanding the evi- dence of sickling. Those cases have beenmanaged as exertional heat illness — and it wasn’t, with tragic consequences,” saidScottA. Anderson, head athletic trainer at the University of Oklahoma, who has spearheadedthedrivefor test- ing. “Themore you know, the bet- ter the athlete can protect them- selves.” Students can opt out if they


prove that they have already been tested or sign a waiver insulating their school fromliability, though theNCAAis considering revoking that option. Even if students can refuse, criticsworry that theywill fear antagonizing coaches or oth- er athletic officials, putting their scholarships and possible future professional careers in jeopardy. Coachesmay be hesitant to inten- sively train and play those who test positive, and professional teamsmaybeless inclinedtodraft


Official: BP oil well


‘is effectively dead’ Cement plug seals leak five months after explosion in gulf


BY HARRY R.WEBER A permanent cement plug


sealed BP’s well about 2.5 miles below the seafloor in the Gulf of Mexico, five months after an ex- plosion sank a drilling rig and led to the worst offshore oil spill in U.S. history. Retired Coast Guard Adm.


Thad W. Allen, the government’s point man on the disaster, said Sunday thatBP’swell “is effective- ly dead” and that it poses no further threat to the gulf.He said a pressure test to ensure the ce- ment plug would hold was com- pleted early Sunday. The gusher was contained in


mid-July after a temporary cap was fitted atop thewell.Mud and cement were later pushed down through the top of thewell, allow- ing the cap to be removed. But the well could not be de-


clared dead until a reliefwellwas drilled so the rupturedwell could be sealed from the bottom, help- ing to ensure that itwill not cause a problem again. The relief well intersected the blown-out well Thursday, and crews started pumping in the cement Friday. The April 20 blast killed 11


workers, and 206 million gallons of oil spewed. The disaster caused an envi-


ronmental and economic night- mare for people who live, work and play along hundreds ofmiles of gulf shoreline from Florida to Texas. It also spurred civil and criminal investigations, cost BP chief executive TonyHayward his job and brought increased gov- ernmental scrutiny of the oil and gas industry, including a costly


moratorium on deep-water off- shore drilling that is still in place. Gulf residents will be feeling


the pain for years to come. There is still plenty of oil in the water, andsomecontinues towashupon shore. Many people are still strug-


gling to make ends meet, with somewaters still closedtofishing. Shrimperswhoareallowedtofish are finding it difficult to sell their catchbecause of theperception— largely from people outside the region — that the seafood is not safe to eat. Tourismalong the gulf has taken a hit. The disaster also has taken a


tollontheoil giantBP.TheBritish company’s stock price took a nosedive after the explosion, though it has recovered some- what. Its image as a stewardof the environment was stained, and its stated commitment to safety was challenged. Owners of BP-brand- ed gas stations in the United States were hit with lost sales as customers protested at the pump. And on the financial side, BP


has already shelled out $9.5 bil- lion in cleanup costs, and the company has promised to set aside $20 billion for a victims compensation fund. The compa- ny could face tens of billions of dollarsmore in government fines and legal costs from hundreds of pending lawsuits. BP took some of the blame for


the gulf oil disaster in an internal report issued this month, ac- knowledging among other things that its workersmisinterpreted a key pressure test of the well. But in a possible preview of its legal strategy, it also pointed the finger at its partners on the doomed rig. BPwas amajority owner of the


well that blew out, and it was leasing the rig that exploded from owner Transocean. —Associated Press


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them. “The stigma and its conse-


quences—both self-imposed and done by coaches, peers, and the institution — are likely to be far, far out of proportion to the actual risk,” saidDuster,who chairedthe HumanGenome Project’sNation- alAdvisoryCommitteeonEthical, Legal and Social Implications.


traitmaycarrysome risk, criticsof the newpolicy also say themagni- tude remains far fromclear.Many athletes with the trait play safely in extreme conditions. And ath- letes who do not carry the gene have suddenly died for other rea- sons, most notably heart prob- lems.


A5 Testing NCAA athletes for sickle cell trait stirs old fears


Among theNCAAfootball players who have died over the past decade from overexertion on the field are Preston Birdsong, left, Ereck Plancher, Dale Lloyd II and Aaron Richardson.


“What doesn’t exist is scientific


data to support the screening,” said Elliott Vichinsky, director of hematology-oncology at Chil- dren’s Hospital in Oakland and director of the Northern Califor- niaSickleCellCenter. “Therearea lot of other people at risk for heat- related illness fromexertion.” The best solution, they argue,


wouldbebettermonitoring, train- ing and care for all athletes — a strategy that worked for themili- tary. That would avoid targeting the estimated 8 percent of blacks whocarrythesicklecell traitgene, compared with about 0.2 percent of whites and 0.5 percent of His- panics. In2008-09,24.8percentof male Division I student-athletes and16percentof femaleDivisionI student-athletes were black, ac- cording toNCAAstatistics. “If you want to protect people,


there’s an easy way to do that: change the training protocol for everyone,” said Lanetta Jordan, theSickleCellDiseaseAssociation ofAmerica’s chiefmedical officer. In addition, critics worry that


students who test positive for the trait and their familieswillmisin- terpret the results as meaning they have sickle cell anemia, par- ticularly if the news is not deliv- ered by a doctor or genetic coun- selor. “If you are going to test for


sickle cell trait, it should not be done in the locker room by a coach,”Howell said. But supporters argue that such


concerns are easilyoutweighedby the benefits. “There have been no known


case of any athletes being denied participation in sport because of their sickle trait status,”Anderson said. “Information beats igno- rance.” Others,while raising questions


about the testing, hesitate to con- demn the program as ill-con- ceived. “I see it as an experiment,” said


Lawrence C. Brody, also of the National Human Genome Re- search Institute. “It’s an opportu- nity for us to learn.” steinr@washpost.com


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