A 12-year-old boy diagnosed with autism has a fatal disease

Alex Vaquero Braup is a young man diagnosed with Attention Deficit Disorder at the age of 12. At 16, his diagnosis changed to Asperger’s syndrome, the scientific definition of autism. And at the age of 23, the worst news came: none of the previous diagnoses were correct, and the young man was suffering from a deadly degenerative disease called metachromatic leukodystrophy, which eventually causes movement and reasoning to stop.

As a child, he had difficulty communicating with others and had sloppy handwriting. He was always a very peculiar boy, could not make friends and could not keep up with the pace of classes.

Metachromatic leukodystrophy is a degenerative disease that mainly affects the brain and spinal cord, peripheral nerves and causes early death of the patient. In accordance with WorldEver since the disease was diagnosed, Alex’s parents have been frantically trying to find out about it by reading every article they can find online and consulting every possible specialist. But, unfortunately, this is an endless search, because there is still no cure. However, bone marrow transplant or stem cell transplant can help people with milder forms of the disease. Enzyme replacement therapy and gene therapy are possible treatment options that have been studied.

The young man’s parents, Alejandro and Mireia, are saddened by the late diagnosis. Had the condition been discovered at an earlier age, a bone marrow transplant would have been enough to save the life of Alex Vaquero Braup, the couple’s only child.

“If we knew about the disease earlier, Alex and I would not have insisted on a bachelor’s degree so much. [período de dois anos de estudo para quem quer ingressar na universidade em Espanha]”, – said Mireya. “We took our things and were going to travel with him, see the world,” he added.