Scientists grow replacement skin for boy suffering devastating genetic disorder

Seven-year-old boy suffering illness causing untreatable wounds over 80% of his body has had his skin replaced by new, genetically modified epidermis

Scientists have grown a replacement, genetically modified skin to cover almost the entire body of a seven-year-old Syrian boy who was suffering from a devastating genetic disorder.

The treatment marks a rare and striking success for the field of regenerative medicine, which has been struggling to transform futuristic-sounding science into therapies that make a difference to patients. In the latest trial, the life of the young boy - whose illness had come close to killing him - was transformed.