A future for Freddie

Freddie has just had his third birthday but there was a time that doctors didn't expect him to see his first.

Freddie

Freddie was born with a rare genetic disorder called X-linked severe combined immunodeficiency or x-SCID. 

It's often called 'baby in the bubble' syndrome as the children have to live in a sterile environment because they have no resistance to infection.  They're unable to fight off even simple germs like a cold.

Freddie received pioneering gene therapy at Great Ormond Street Hospital in London, funded in part by Jeans for Genes and the PiA. 

Doctors were able to put a working copy of the faulty gene into Freddie's body. 

"We'll always be grateful to Jeans for Genes and the PiA.  Gene therapy has transformed Freddie from a desperately ill baby into a cheeky and very energetic toddler!" Freddie's mum, Julie

The working gene then told his body how to create the white blood cells it wasn't producing.  His immune system has gradually grown stronger and although Freddie still has to take medication, he can now visit his grandparents, play with his sister and do all the things that a boy his age likes to do.

"We'll always be grateful to Jeans for Genes and the PiA for their parts in funding Freddie's life-saving treatment," says Freddie's mum, Julie.  "Gene therapy has transformed Freddie from a desperately ill baby into a cheeky and very energetic toddler!

It's our dearest wish that other children affected by genetic disorders and their families will benefit from monies raised by Jeans for Genes and the PiA."