‘Groundbreaking gene trial is just the beginning’

“It marks anew era in the treatment for deafness. It also supports the development of other gene therapies that may prove to make a difference in other geneticrelated hearing conditions

Opal Sandy’s successful treatment is “just the beginning of gene therapies”, the chief investigator behind the pioneering trial has said.

Professor Manohar Bance, an ear surgeon at the Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, which treated the 18-month-old girl, says there is hope that gene therapy could aid other forms of deafness in children.

He said: "It marks a new era in the treatment for deafness.

"It also supports the development of other gene therapies that may prove to make a difference in other genetic-related hearing conditions, many of which are more common than auditory neuropathy."

He said it could take a while for more children to benefit from gene therapy, which is not currently available on the NHS.

"What's really helped though is that the NHS does pay for genetic testing now for hearing loss," he said.

Opal's surgery, which was carried out under general anaesthetic, was very similar to fitting a cochlear implant, Prof Bance continued.

"So basically, we find the inner ear and we open the inner ear and we infuse the treatment, in this particular case using a catheter, over 16 minutes," he said.

"We have to make a release hole in another part of the ear to let the treatment out because it has to go all the way through the ear.

"And then we just repair and close up, so it's actually a very similar approach to a cochlear implant, except we don't put the implant in."

Martin Mclean, senior policy adviser at the National Deaf Children's Society, welcomed the study, saying it would lead to learning regarding gene therapies for deafness.

"We would like to emphasise that, with the right support from the start, deafness should never be a barrier to happiness or fulfilment," he said.

"As a charity, we support families to make informed choices about medical technologies, so that they can give their deaf child the best possible start in life.”