FDA approves first gene-editing treatments for human illness

In landmark decisions, the Food and Drug Administration Friday approved the first medical treatments that uses gene-editing to alleviate human illness.

The FDA approved the genetic therapies for anyone 12 and older suffering from the most severe form of sickle cell disease, a brutal blood disorder that has long been neglected by medical research.

The decisions are being hailed as milestones for treating sickle cell and for the rapidly advancing field of gene-editing, which is stirring excitement for treatment of many diseases.