I'm So Flattered...and Excited

So yesterday, I got a call from a person who we met though the Down Syndrome Association of LA (DSALA). He has a son who is 7 or 8 years old. He has been working with Dr. William Mobley, a scientist who has been working at developing a drug that will help kids with DS have a better cognitive level so that they may be able to one day live independently, and be able to do what other people do. We saw him speak at the DSALA luncheon last year and it blew me away. He breeds DS mice, and then studies them. It's this amazing study he is doing, and it's hard for me to explain, so here is the website of the foundation he is doing this research through: www.dsrtf.org (sorry, I don't know how to link it, so you might have to cut and paste).

Anyway, I got a call yesterday, asking if I would be interested in advising them in doing some PR so they can raise awareness, and raise money to start clinical trials next year. Now, when I spoke to Dr. Mobley at the National Down Syndrome convention last year in Anaheim, CA, I asked him again how close he thought he was to this discovery, if you will. He said that he is about ten years away from having something. I asked him, "so you think this will allow my child to be like typical kids, and get good grades, and eventually hold any job he wants, and maybe get married?" He said, "you better plan on inviting me to your son's wedding, because I plan on dancing at it." For a doctor and scientist to be that sure, and that willing to give me so much hope, he must be on the verge of a great breakthrough.

Now, when I asked this person to give me a little more information about where they were at, he said that he has developed a drug that they have used on the DS mice, and it has cognitively brought them up to the level of the typical mice. So, they want to start clinical trials and see if this will work. If that's the case, then his time frame is about right, because Owen is now almost three, and that gives them seven more years to do trials and studies and perfect it. Wouldn't that be so great if our kids could be able to decide to do whatever they want to, and not be held back by their inability to process life and all that goes with it? I know there are probably a lot of negative factors to consider as well, but for now, I'm just excited by the possibilities. Stay tuned for more...