The Forever Fix: Gene Therapy and the Boy Who Saved It
"In this impressive, meticulously researched study of the exciting new developments in gene therapy, geneticist and journalist Lewis (Human Genetics) looks closely at the history of setbacks plaguing the treatment of rare genetic diseases as well as recent breakthroughs...Yet with each success, as Lewis recounts in this rigorous, energetic work, possibilities in treating HIV infection and dozens of other diseases might be around the next corner."--Publisher's Weekly(starred review) "A fascinating account of groundbreaking science and the people who make it possible." --Kirkus"Ricki Lewis gives us the inspiring story of gene therapy as told through Corey's eyes--literally.  Her book delves into the challenges modern medicine faces--both in its bitter disappointments and great successes--but it goes much deeper than that.  With empathy and grace, Lewis shows us the unimaginable strength of parents with sick children and the untiring devotion of the physicians who work to find ‘the forever fix’ to save them. But best of all Lewis gives us a story of profound hope." --Molly Caldwell Crosby, author ofThe American Plague: The Untold Story of Yellow Fever, the Epidemic that Shaped Our HistoryandAsleep: The Forgotten Epidemic that Remains One of Medicine's Greatest Mysteries“The Forever Fixis a wonderful story told by one of our most gifted science and medical writers.  In the tradition of Siddhartha Mukherjee’sThe Emperor of All Maladies, Ricki Lewis explains complex biological processes in extremely understandable ways, ultimately providing crucial insights into the modeling of disease and illustrating how gene therapy can treat and even potentially cure the most challenging of our health conditions.” - Dennis A. Steindler, Ph.D., former Executive Director of the McKnight Brain Institute, University of Florida“Ricki Lewis has written a remarkable book that vividly captures the breathtaking highs and devastating lows of gene therapy over the past decade while giving ample voice to all sides -- the brave patient volunteers, their parents and physicians.The Forever Fixis required reading as we dare to dream of curing a host of genetic diseases.” --Kevin Davies, Founding editor ofNature Genetics; author ofThe $1,000 GenomeandCracking the Genome"In 'The Forever Fix,' Ms. Lewis chronicles gene therapy's climb toward the Peak of Inflated Expectations over the course of the 1990s. A geneticist and the author of a widely used textbook, she demonstrates a mastery of the history."-- The Wall Street Journal"An engaging and accessible look at gene therapy." --Times Union“Medical writer Ricki Lewis interweaves science, the history of medical trial and error, and human stories … from the death in 1999 of teenager Jesse Gelsinger, from a reaction to gene therapy intended to combat his liver disease, to radical successes in some children with adenosine deaminase deficiency.” --Nature“Lewis adeptly traverses the highs and lows of gene therapy and explores its past, present, and future through the tales of those who’ve tested its validity.” –The Scientist