Duchenne is the most common fatal genetic disease to strike children around the world. Kids with DMD cannot produce dystrophin, a protein necessary for muscle strength and function. As a result, every skeletal muscle in the body – including the heart and lungs — deteriorates.
Since 2004, we have maintained a laser-like focus on rewriting this story to make Duchenne history. Powered by your support, we have worked tirelessly to seed innovation and drive progress. Today, there are more than 50 drug development programs underway, and entrepreneurs, scientists, and nonprofit foundations are collaborating to achieve the next breakthroughs like never before.
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The Facts About Duchenne
What is it?
- 100% fatal, with most kids losing their lives in their late teens or early twenties
- Most boys with DMD are in a wheelchair between 10-12 years old
- Associated with respiratory failure, heart failure, and debilitating orthopedic complications
- There are 9 types of muscular dystrophy, and Duchenne is the most severe
Who Gets It?
- Approximately one in 3,500 boys born the world over
- In very rare cases, a girl is affected (approximately one in a million)
- An estimated 15,000-20,000 children in the US
- Approximately 200,000 around the world
- DMD affects boys of every ethnicity and geographic location
- One third of all DMD cases are the result of random in utero mutation, with no warning before the affected baby is born