I was interested to read about the ‘three DNA babies’ born in the UK after the mothers underwent mitochondrial donations in order to prevent their babies from developing mitochondrial disease.
According to the NHS:
Continue readingMitochondrial disease occurs when mitochondria do not prodyce enough energy. This causes a range of symptoms and the severity of the disease depends on how many cells are affected and where they are located.
There is a new sickle cell treatment now being given to patients in England!
Sickle Cell Disease is a debilitating condition that predominantly affects black people. It is a painful condition that requires constant treatment and can lead to what is known as sickle cell ‘crises’. If patients are not treated, they are left in a great deal of pain. Up until now, there has been no treatment.
Read more about it here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-60498916
What is a rare disease?
According to the European Union, rare diseases are classified as one that affects less than 5 in 10,000 of the general population. Similarly, the NIH defines it as: ‘one that affects fewer than 200,000 people’. This means that it’s possible that most people aren’t aware that rare diseases exist unless it affects them personally. Moreover, if we consider that the world is made up of 7 billion people, these rare diseases don’t seem so rare after all.
It is estimated that up to 25 – 30 million Americans are affected by rare diseases. Similarly, it’s said that 3.5 million people in the UK and 30 million people in Europe are already/will be affected by rare diseases. Continue reading
purplexed science 