As I sat and listened to Dr. Maranke Koster speak, yesterday and this morning, about the process of turning skin cells into induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells, I was beyond amazed… I was filled with hope. Hope… from a mouse.
If you had told me thirty years ago that I would one day look at a mouse with such awe, I would have laughed at you. Frankly, I’ve always thought mice were a little creepy… until now.
To think that IN MY LIFETIME they may develop a cure for skin erosion’s associated with AEC syndrome is beyond my wildest dreams. Quite honestly, I never thought I would see such research being done, much less hope for results, as the P63 related syndromes are so rare.
I can’t help but think of the skin erosion’s that my son gets on his scalp and feet, or of watching my niece learn to open a door by turning the door knob with the backs of her hands– because the palms of her hands were so eroded and painful that she couldn’t bare to put any pressure on them, and think… “one day.” And now “one day” could be just around the corner.
The thought of “one day” is what prompted me to lie still, yesterday, as a skin biopsy was harvested and placed into a test tube. I realize that the research that Dr. Koster and her colleagues is doing now may not provide any immediate benefit to me. But, it holds the promise of “One Day” for my son, and with that my future grandchildren.
Who knew such hope could start in a mouse?
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Even though Alex has HED the feelings in the hearts of moms seem to be the same. Through the week all I kept thinking is every “mile we smile” and everything we hear gives me such hope for the future!
Indeed, Gina! I am still overwhelmed by all the possibilities I see in the future, which I never would have dreamed of before. It amazes me how God has allowed scientific research to advance at lights peed in my lifetime!
[…] learn more about the research project we participated in, check out my Hope From a Mouse post over at the Gateway to the NFED […]