Growing up, Halloween was always one of my favorite holidays. My birthday falls a couple of weeks after the holiday, so I always combined the two. For years, I threw Halloween-themed birthday parties, complete with costumes, games, and, most importantly, cookie cake. Each year, we gathered in a local restaurant’s…

Using an experimental gene-editing approach, a team of U.S. scientists was able to successfully and precisely remove the genetic defect underlying most cases of Friedreich’s ataxia (FA) in several laboratory cell models. According to the researchers, the strategy achieved “precise editing” — as high as 98.2% — among connective…

Last week, I sat with my service dog near my home’s entrance, waiting for public transportation to take me to a doctor appointment. It was a cool fall day with drizzling rain — the kind of day that made me want to cancel the appointment and cozy up by the…

I recently came across this wise advice from 1 Peter 3:10: “If you want to enjoy true life and have only good days, then avoid saying anything hurtful, and never let a lie come out of your mouth.” It prompted a self-reflection that really convicted me. Saying hurtful things or…

People with Friedreich’s ataxia (FA) develop thickening of the heart muscle wall early on, followed by a gradual decline in pumping function that can take up to three decades to appear, according to a study that examined more than 25 years of echocardiogram records from nearly 600 FA patients.