ST. LOUIS (KMOX) - Imagine the joy of hearing your hard to treat illness has just had a new treatment approved by the FDA that may spare many who have it from unbearable pain.
That's how many sickle cell patients are feeling -- following last week's FDA approval of two new gene therapies to treat the painful blood disorder.
Most of the patients who received the treatment found their severe pains resolved for at least 18 months.
The treatment was shown to have a 96.7% success rate in data presented to the FDA.
“Sickle cell disease is a rare, debilitating and life-threatening blood disorder with significant unmet need, and we are excited to advance the field especially for individuals whose lives have been severely disrupted by the disease by approving two cell-based gene therapies today,” Dr. Nicole Verdun, director of the Office of Therapeutic Products within the FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, wrote in a statement.
The new, one-time gene therapy treatments are for patients who are at least 12 years old with severe forms of sickle cell.
It is estimated that 100,000 people in the U.S. live with sickle cell disease. One of those dealing with is KMOX's own Tiffani Jackson.
KMOX Health Editor Fred Bodimer talked with Jackson, who is a reporter in the newsroom, to discuss living with the disease and how much hope she has after the news.
While not deemed a “cure” for sickle cell, the treatment edits cells to produce fetal hemoglobin, which restores normal function to red blood cells affected by the disease.
With the FDA hurdle cleared, the biggest barrier is now the price tag: Depending on which company treatment is purchased from, the price could run from $2.2 million to $3.1 million.
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