Lifeboat Foundation

Great news for precision medicine.

European regulators have given the green light for a British drug firm to produce the world’s first gene therapy treatment for children.

GlaxoSmithKline was given approval by the European Commission to provide the treatment to children with a rare immune disorder — which can be fatal for those affected.

The treatment, called Strimvelis, is the first stem cell gene therapy to treat children with severe combined immunodeficiency — commonly referred to as ‘bubble boy’ syndrome.