Genetic Therapy: The Future is Now

What if there was no need to worry about inherited disease? I know it would put my mind at ease, since heart disease runs in my family. Through gene therapy inherited disease would never be a problem again. That means no more cancer, no more heart disease, no more Alzheimer's, no more inherited disease at all. I hope by the end of this article you will understand what gene therapy is, what the benefits are, and why most controversial points are irrational.

Let me explain what genetic therapy is. The Centre for Genetics Education states that gene therapy is, essentially, taking a faulty gene and replacing it with a good gene. There are three ways to use gene therapy are inactivating a mutated gene, replacing a mutated gene, or introducing a new gene into the body to help fight disease.The good people at the Human Genome Project explain that there are two different types of genetic therapy. Somatic "which is done in the adult cells of persons known to have a disease." And germ line "which is done in egg and sperm cells and prevents the trait from being passed on to further generations."

Life Steps, the health promotion program, points out that the potential scope of gene therapy is huge. Over 4200 diseases have been identified as resulting from abnormal genes. Germ line gene therapy has the potential to completely prevent any inherited disease, including cancer, heart disease, and Alzheimer's. Somatic therapy can be used to prevent and treat many horrible diseases. Including Aids. Somatic and germ line gene therapy may also be the only way of addressing many diseases. As pointed out in the gene therapy policy statement from Macalester college germ-line therapy offers a true cure, and not simply symptomatic treatment.