Cord Blood to the Rescue: Infusions help babies with Hurler’s syndrome
By Nathan Seppa
Hurler’s syndrome is a rare hereditary condition caused by the lack of an enzyme needed to regulate basic cell functions. Treatments to replace the enzyme help children with the condition but don’t salvage cells in all parts of the body.
Bone marrow transplantation, which supplies a child with new cells that can make the enzyme, has been the only way to cure Hurler’s syndrome. But unless a child has a closely matching marrow donor, such transplants often introduce severe complications.