Three-year-old Zhou Yangyang can now call his parents “Mom” and “Dad” and name colors, having been completely deaf just a few months ago. This boy is one of five children who have been able to hear for the first time, thanks to a revolutionary gene therapy they received as part of a clinical trial conducted by Chinese and American researchers. This treatment provides new hope for these children who have been affected since birth by a rare genetic mutation.
Zhang Yi, Zhou Yangyang’s mother, recounted that she was so moved that she cried when, three months after the treatment, she realized her child could hear her knocking on the door. She said in an interview from Shanghai, “I hid in the closet and called to him, and he responded.”
The study, published on Wednesday in the prestigious journal "Nature Medicine," details the results of the first application of this gene therapy procedure on both ears. The procedure resulted in better language comprehension and a greater ability to locate sound sources compared to treatment of just one ear.
Zheng Yi Chen, a researcher at Eaton Peabody Laboratories who led the study, explained that this study represents a "critical turning point." He added that companies are beginning to conduct clinical studies, including two in Boston, to obtain approval for the use of the treatment.
He noted, "If the results remain as they are, and no complications are observed, I believe the procedure could be approved within three to five years."
