Progerie 17-year-old Okines died as an old woman

Progerie: 17-year-old lived in the body of an old woman

05/04/2015

17-year-old Hayley Okines suffered from an extremely rare disease. She had Progerie, a hereditary disease in which sufferers age rapidly. The Briton had turned her suffering through a book to the world public, among other things. Now she died in England.

Child lived in the body of an old woman
Hayley Okines already had the body of an old woman at the age of ten. At the age of 17, the Progerie girl died at her home in East Sussex, England. The Briton made her extremely rare illness, which caused her to age prematurely, known since her childhood in public. For example, Okines sharpened public awareness of the suffering through TV appearances and documentaries. She also described in her autobiography with the title „Old Before My Time“ her unusual life. Her mother wrote on Facebook: „My darling went to a better place. She has breathed her last breath in my arms.“

Rare untreatable hereditary disease
Progerie is a very rare, incurable hereditary disease. According to the World „Progeria Research Foundation“ 124 cases. The internet platform „www.progerie.com“ According to premature aging, diseases usually develop in old age. A prograining in infancy, called Hutchinson-Gilford-Progerie syndrome (HGPS), usually appears in the first year of life. According to the experts, the aging process in HGPS is five to ten times faster than in healthy people. The average life expectancy of the so-called „old children“ is 13 years. Mostly a heart attack or stroke is the cause of death.

Symptoms develop in the first year of life
The symptoms of the disease usually develop between the sixth and twelfth month of life. The affected children suffer from growth disorders or dwarfism, rapid skin aging, hair loss to baldness, osteoporosis, joint changes and atherosclerosis (arteriosclerosis). Patients also have a small jaw, as well as tooth defects, nail defects, a small face with the typically protruding nose and a squeaky voice. Furthermore, there is a loss of subcutaneous fatty tissue, which makes the skin thin, and lets the vessels shine through, especially in the head area.

Appreciation for the deceased
The President and Executive Director of the „Progeria Research Foundation“, Audrey Gordon, honored Okines for her participation in drug tests and scientific studies that have made progress in the fight against Progerie. The patient far exceeded her life expectancy predictions, but in the end, her body did not participate. After the death of the world famous Hayley Okines went on the website of „Progeria Research Foundation“ Hundreds of condolence messages. (Ad)

Image: See Source - The Cell Nucleus and Aging: Tantalizing Clues and Hopeful Promises. Scaffidi P, Gordon L, Misteli T. PLoS Biology Vol. 3/11/2005, e395 doi: 10.1371 / journal.pbio.0030395