Lana
Swancey, a two-year-old from Columbia, South Carolina, will be the youngest
child in the world to undergo path breaking genetic brain transfer surgery
for Canavan Disease under a Phase I Clinical Study funded
by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.
According to
Paola Leone, Ph.D., principal investigator
for a research study on
the disease, the younger the patient is, the better chance they have for
improvement.
Lana's surgery
will take place Tuesday, April 29, 2003, at Cooper University Hospital,
the only hospital in the world where this treatment is available.
"We are blessed
to have found Dr. Leone," said Michelle Swancey, Lana's mother, who learned
about the NIH research study through the Internet. "She was studying this
disease long before Lana was even born. We are looking forward to
seeing any effects this treatment may have for our daughter."
Swancey says
her daughter was diagnosed with Canavan's at four months old. Symptoms
of the disease include a regression in physical and mental awareness. The
ailment involves a defect in biological makeup that helps build brain and
nerve tissue. Children with the disease never learn to walk, talk
or feed themselves and invariably die young.
Lana is one
of seven patients enrolled in the research study who will undergo treatment
this year. The Swancey family met with Dr. Leone in December 2001
when Lana was six months old. After examinations and evaluations,
she was placed on a waiting list. In February 2003, Swancey was notified
that her daughter was selected to receive the treatment.
"We were told
to keep her healthy and stimulated," she recalled. Swancey says her
daughter is responsive both physically and mentally. She laughs,
rolls from
side to side and recognizes
familiar faces.
--
Information provided by
Cooper University Hospital.
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