Health Alert for Parents from Novartis Gene Therapies

A year and a half ago, a family received a devastating diagnosis in the midst of the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Today, that mother, Kathryn McBride, is sharing her son’s experience with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), a rare, devastating genetic disease, and how early diagnosis and treatment transformed his life.

Not every baby is as lucky. That’s because this simple test for SMA is not included on every state’s newborn screening panel. August is SMA Awareness Month and Kathryn is advocating for parents and physicians to recognize the early signs of SMA, to help babies receive a diagnosis and treatment to minimize the irreversible loss of motor neurons.