Blog | Page 35 of 158 | Boston Children's Answers

One-time treatment could block a deadly form of graft-versus-host disease

Posted on July 20, 2023 by Nancy Fliesler | Basic/Translational, Research

Tags: cancer, cellular and molecular medicine, leukemia, stem cell transplant

Even when a bone marrow transplant cures leukemia or lymphoma, patients can still pass away from graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), in which T cells in the donor graft attack the recipient’s own tissues. Leslie Kean, MD, PhD, director of stem cell transplant at Dana-Farber/Boston Children’s Cancer and Blood Disorders Center, has long sought to prevent this ... Read More

Tagged: cancer, cellular and molecular medicine, leukemia, stem cell transplant

From bench to bedside: A promising option for unremitting ulcerative colitis

Posted on July 19, 2023 by Nancy Fliesler | Clinical, Research

Tags: gastroenterology, immunology, inflammatory bowel disease, ulcerative colitis

Many existing treatments for inflammatory bowel disease, like Remicade® and Humira®, work by blocking inflammatory cytokines such as tumor necrosis factor (TNF) and interleukins IL-12 and IL-23, which are over-produced in autoimmune disease. But few patients with ulcerative colitis get complete relief from these drugs. A small but promising open-label clinical trial, published recently in ... Read More

Tagged: gastroenterology, immunology, inflammatory bowel disease, ulcerative colitis

Perfecting the craft of modeling disease in stem cells: Dosh Whye

Posted on July 18, 2023 by Gina Mantica | People, Research

Tags: neuroscience, organoids, research rising stars, spina bifida, stem cells

Part of an ongoing series profiling researchers at Boston Children’s Hospital. Dosh Whye has always wanted to make peoples’ lives better, but he never imagined that tending to stem cells in a lab seven days a week would be the way he would do it. Now, as an assistant director of the Human Neuron Core ... Read More

Tagged: neuroscience, organoids, research rising stars, spina bifida, stem cells

Seeking a path forward for custom genetic treatments

Posted on July 14, 2023 by Nancy Fliesler | Clinical Care, Research

In 2018, at age 7, Mila Makovec became the world’s first person to be treated with a drug made just for her. Languishing from Batten disease, a rare, fatal neurodegenerative disorder, she received an antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) drug designed to silence her genetic mutation, injected into the fluid around her spine through a lumbar puncture. ... Read More

Not just another patient: Care for midaortic syndrome that’s ‘handcrafted’ for Iris

Posted on July 12, 2023 by Jessica Cerretani | Patient Stories

Tags: hypertension, midaortic syndrome

This past July, Iris Huot, her older sister, Audrey, and their parents, Jessica and Austin, gathered around their dining room table. To an outsider, it might seem like an ordinary dinner, but for the Huots, it was a moment of perspective — and gratitude. “It was the first time in eight weeks that we had ... Read More

Tagged: hypertension, midaortic syndrome

From medical first to marathon finisher: Corey’s ACL story

Posted on July 10, 2023 by Joanne Barker | Patient Stories

Tags: acl, orthopedics, sports injury, sports medicine

Corey Peak’s role as a “medical first” began on a ski slope in 2015 when he tore his anterior collateral ligament (ACL). He remembers falling and hearing two pops. “One side was my binding releasing. The other side, I later realized, was my ACL tearing.” Thirty days after his accident, Corey would become the first ... Read More

Tagged: acl, orthopedics, sports injury, sports medicine

Facial weakness: A dark matter detective story

Posted on July 6, 2023 by Nancy Fliesler | Basic/Translational, Research

Tags: genetics and genomics, neurology, neuroscience, ophthalmology

Elizabeth Engle, MD, has devoted her career to finding genetic and developmental causes for disorders of eye, eyelid, and facial movement. From common conditions like strabismus to very rare disorders, these conditions can impact a person’s appearance and impair social communication, making it hard to shift one’s eyes up, down, or sideways or adjust facial expressions. Each ... Read More

Tagged: genetics and genomics, neurology, neuroscience, ophthalmology

Thinking – and operating – outside the box: Bypassing Saoirse’s aneurysm

Posted on July 5, 2023 by Katie Paradis | Patient Stories

Tags: cerebrovascular surgery and interventions center, headaches, neurosurgery, stroke

Saoirse just turned 3. There was a big to-do for her birthday, complete with family flying to Massachusetts from Ireland for the occasion. The celebration was big because Saoirse has a lot to celebrate. About six months ago, doctors discovered an unstable aneurysm in her brain, and within days she underwent surgery to treat the ... Read More

Tagged: cerebrovascular surgery and interventions center, headaches, neurosurgery, stroke

How transnasal endoscopy got Jamie back on the golf course

Posted on June 30, 2023 by Veronica Giarla | Patient Stories

Tags: aerodigestive, allergy, eosinophilic esophagitis, gastroenterology

Jamie is like most 15-year-olds — he goes to school, hangs out with his friends, and still makes time to get outside to play some golf and baseball. However, when Jamie was having bouts of throwing up and getting food stuck in his throat, he and his mom, Tricia, knew it wasn’t just a case ... Read More

Tagged: aerodigestive, allergy, eosinophilic esophagitis, gastroenterology

Biko’s legacy: Mom honors her son through water safety awareness

Posted on June 28, 2023 by Jessica Cerretani | Health and Parenting

Tags: safety

Biko Mangcu was “a big bright light,” says his mother, Sipho. Everyone in his Cambridge, Massachusetts, neighborhood knew him. His big brown eyes and wide smile were featured in advertising that still adorns toy packaging. At school, his teachers and classmates called him “the mayor.” “He was so full of love and joy,” says Sipho. ... Read More

Tagged: safety