Meet Sam Berns, The Kid That Ages Fast: Searching For The Cure Of Progeria

• comments
• 
• 

Sam Berns is not your ordinary kind of kid. He looks way older than his age because of a one of a kind disease called Progeria. Yahoo News reports that it is so rare it affects less than 250 kids around the globe.

Even the doctors and his own parents, who are doctors themselves, could not believe that Sam's disease makes him age so fast without any given proof. His mom, Dr Leslie Gordon, initiated the Progeria Research Foundation to discover more of the mysterious disease. It led his parents and other medical experts to much greater challenges, including how to find a cure for progeria that will also help other kids who have it.

Life According to Sam

For more than a decade now, Sam's family has been in a continuous journey to fight the odd disorder. And now, an HBO documentary entitled Life According to Sam was made to highlight their struggles, milestones and the daily life of Sam, ABC News reports.

It was made over the span of three years and gave emphasis on how Sam longs to be a normal student while his disease keeps on making things hard for him. It was made by renowned filmmakers, Andrea and Sean Fine.

The biggest achievement so far of the foundation is the making of a drug that can slow down the illness. The drug goes by the name of FTI or Farnesyltransferase inhibitor that can add years to the length of life of not just Sam but also of other Progeria patients. Various clinical trials are now under process which includes a total of 45 kids from about 24 countries.

The clinical trial lets Sam and the rest of kid patients to go over a minimum of a hundred tests in a period of five days. It can be hard for the kids especially when it includes a lot of needle sticking, prodding and other breath tests among many others.

In the meantime, the race continues on for 17-year-old Sam Berns and the rest of the Progeria patients.

If you want to catch the documentary, Science News shares the schedule of screenings below:

On HBO:

October 24 at 1:30 p.m.

October 27 at 9 a.m.

October 29 at 11:45 a.m.

On HBO2:

October 23, at 8 p.m.

It will also be shown in various film festivals in various states around the US. You can also check out lifeaccordingtosam.com for more information.