Palo Alto, CA — Blink, a new National Geographic documentary, follows Edith and Sébastien Pelletier as they begin the journey of preparing their three children diagnosed with Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP) for blindness by teaching them new skills and showing them the world.
An accompanying National Geographic science article, This rare disorder is a leading cause of blindness in young people, prepares audiences for Blink by explaining the causes, symptoms, and treatments of RP, an inherited, incurable, blinding eye disease that is often diagnosed in early childhood and progresses through adulthood, ultimately ending in blindness.
Vinit Mahajan M.D., Ph.D., Stanford professor, retina surgeon, and vice chair for ophthalmology research, was interviewed for the article.
Mahajan explained, “RP is difficult to treat because there are mutations in as many as one hundred genes in the retina that can cause photoceptors, specialized light detecting cells associated with vision, to die. I am hopeful that improved genetic testing, new gene therapies, small molecule drugs, retinal cell transplants, and electronic support devices will change the prognosis and outcomes for RP patients.”