Breakthrough in Leukemia Essay example

Submitted By teddykim100
Words: 286
Pages: 2

Emma Whitehead, 7, was at one point diagnosed with lymphoblastic leukemia when she was just six years old. Her parents were rejected from all the hospitals they went to. Frantically looking for a cure, her parents sought a new type of treatment from the Children’s Hospital in Philadelphia. This was a new type of treatment, and had never been tried on a child or anyone with Emma’s disease. Seven months later, she emerged from the treatment cancer free and with no relapse. The treatment involves an extraction of the patient’s T-cells, millions, and an injection of a gene that allows the T-cells to easily kill off the cancer cells. This injection involves a deformed form of HIV to help transport the gene into the T-cells. The HIV is used because it is highly efficient at carrying genetic material into the cell. The new genes then program the T-cells to kill the B-cells in the immune system. The B-cells are the cells that corrupt in form when leukemia is active. The T-cells are employed, and the process begins. The treatment, like many others, is still unclear. What will happen with different types of patients? What will happen with a negative reaction? There is still work that needs to be done. The sample space is small to determine whether the process can work. However, the future seems bright and hopeful. If the treatment is deemed safe and secure, then we could be looking at a bright future for cancer patients. The variable of course can be the type of cells the