The evolution of gene therapy
Sponsored by bluebird bio
A new industrial revolution
bluebird bio is aiming to be one of the first companies to launch a gene therapy in the UK. Often mistakenly seen as a treatment of the future, gene therapy has come of age, primed and ready to go with bluebird bio a leader in the field. Gene therapy’s arrival on the scene is very
Gene therapy’s potential could soon be fulfilled at last
Gene therapy has been promising to transform healthcare for half a century, and still we have only around ten treatments approved for use. But that is going to change dramatically over the next five to ten years, according to Nicola Redfern, UK general manager of bluebird bio, as many treatments for rare genetic diseases are
How gene therapy works
Gene therapy aims to repair, replace or add functional genes in individuals suffering from specific genetic diseases Gene therapy has traditionally been in the form of ‘gene addition’ which commonly utilises a ‘viral vector’ to introduce functional genes into the cells of eligible patients [1]. Other types of gene therapies developed more recently include the
How can the NHS speed up adoption of new technologies?
The treatments provided by the National Health Service of 2020 would seem alien to the Nye Bevan of 1948, although the key principle of free healthcare to all at point of need remains intact. It is tempting to believe that the latest advances in technology are revolutionising healthcare both in the UK and around the
Gene therapy has the potential to transform a terminal diagnosis – including my son’s
It was nine years ago, in a windowless room in Great Ormond Street Hospital, that I first heard the words: ‘I think your son has something called Duchenne muscular dystrophy.’ I tried to comprehend what the consultant was telling me: the terminal diagnosis of my child. My son Eli, who looked like any other healthy
Are ministers right to back gene therapy?
It isn’t for government to ‘pick winners’, according to the ruling philosophy of Conservative industrial policy over the past three decades. Yet ministers have made an exception in the field of gene therapy. Three years ago, the government’s Life Sciences: Industrial Strategy identified it as an area in which public investment might reap rich rewards
Will the pandemic put gene therapy advancement at risk?
When Boris Johnson delivered his first speech as Prime Minister on the steps of Downing Street, we were living in a different world: Brexit and a looming general election were the issues of the day, and a pandemic that would come to dominate every aspect of public policy was still six months off our radar.