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Teen Survivor Meets Gene Hunter for Heart Cure
27 Sep
Summary
- Jack Taylor survived cardiac arrest at 17 due to a rare inherited heart condition.
- Professor Watkins discovered the gene responsible for Jack's condition.
- Promising gene therapy research offers hope for a cure for future generations.
Jack Taylor, now 19, survived a sudden cardiac arrest that occurred in February 2024 when he was 17. He was saved by CPR and later underwent open heart surgery, spending 35 days on life support. Jack now has an internal defibrillator to monitor and treat abnormal heart rhythms.
Genetic testing revealed Jack has hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), a rare inherited heart condition with no current cure. His father and twin brother share the same gene variant. HCM causes the heart muscle to thicken, impairing its pumping ability.
Jack recently met Professor Hugh Watkins at Oxford University. Professor Watkins leads the CureHeart project, funded with £30 million from the British Heart Foundation, which investigates revolutionary gene therapy. His team aims to edit or silence the faulty genes causing inherited heart muscle diseases like Jack's.
Professor Watkins discovered the specific HCM gene responsible for Jack's condition in 1995. He expressed hope that by the time Jack has children, a cure will be available for inherited genetic changes. The project is advancing towards patient testing, supported by stable, long-term funding.
