I often tell people that my mind is a dangerous neighborhood and that I should never venture into it alone. This usually gets a laugh, which the comic in me appreciates, as I often say it to lighten a difficult conversation. A little release of tension doesn’t hurt anyone. But…

When my youngest son, Caeleb, was 8 years old, our family went on a trip that required him to use a wheelchair at the airport. His severe hemophilia A with an inhibitor had caused persistent joint bleeds, which resulted in significant pain and limited mobility, as well as…

MGX-001, a gene-editing therapy being developed by Metagenomi for hemophilia A, has shown promising safety and durability in an ongoing preclinical study in three nonhuman primates, the company has announced. Results showed that after one year, two animals had normal (82%) or nearly normal activity levels (41%) of…

Treatment with the experimental gene therapy Roctavian (valoctocogene roxaparvovec) significantly increased factor VIII levels in men with severe hemophilia A treated in the Phase 3 GENEr8-1 trial and with reasonable safety, findings at one and two years post-treatment show. While declines in these levels were evident over time,…

The European Commission has granted conditional marketing authorization to BioMarin’s one-time gene therapy Roctavian (valoctocogene roxaparvovec) as a treatment for adults with severe hemophilia A who have neither inhibitors nor detectable antibodies against adeno-associated virus serotype 5 (AAV5). The decision, which comes a couple of months after a…

Long-term prophylaxis or preventive treatment with Eloctate (efmoroctocog alfa) helps to ease pain and improve health-related life quality for adults and children with hemophilia A, according to an analysis of three Phase 3 clinical trials. “These analyses highlight the relevance of pain, physical health, and overall wellbeing as…

In February, I wrote about hemophilia’s effects on bone health after attending a webinar sponsored by Factor My Way, a patient support program. It featured bleeding disorders expert Claudio Sandoval, MD, who explained that everyone with hemophilia A (factor VIII deficiency) is at an increased risk of…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted fast-track status to SB-525, a clinical gene therapy for hemophilia A developed by Sangamo Therapeutics in partnership with Pfizer. SB-525 delivers a human factor VIII cDNA construct and synthetic liver-specific promoter to the cell’s nucleus by using recombinant adeno-associated virus (rAAV). The…

Preventive treatment with Altuviiio (efanesoctocog alfa) provided better bleed prevention than Hemlibra (emicizumab) in adults and adolescents with hemophilia A, according to an indirect comparison of Phase 3 clinical trial data. “While it should be borne in mind that this is an indirect comparison and, as such,…

From the time my wife found out she was pregnant, we celebrated a ritual each evening until the birth of my oldest son, Julian. Before we kissed good night, I put my face to her belly and sang the song “For Baby (For Bobbie)” to him. Without seeing…