Sickle cell disease is a genetic condition that affects red blood cells BSIP SA/Alamy
Just 13 years after the CRISPR gene-editing technique was described, the first medical treatment to make use of it has been approved. On 15 November, the UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency authorised a treatment that can effectively cure sickle cell disease and transfusion-dependent beta thalassemia for people aged 12 and over. The US and European Union are expected to approve it soon too.
It is a momentous step forward – and it is just the start. The…
