Brothers from Aylesbury set to benefit from life changing haemophilia treatment
Two brothers from Aylesbury have hailed a medical breakthrough that could change the lives of thousands of people living with haemophilia.
Harry and Paul Stephens were diagnosed with severe haemophilia A at birth.
People with haemophilia bleed for longer than those without the condition, because of a lack of a protein in the blood, which can be life threatening in severe cases.
WATCH: Harry and Paul talk about their experiences of living with haemophilia.
How does haemophilia A affect people?
People with haemophilia A are at risk of spontaneous or uncontrolled bleeding because they do not have enough of a blood clotting protein or it does not work properly.
The new drug, known as Emicizumab or Hemlibra, bolsters the blood by mimicking the action of the blood protein factor VIII to avoid uncontrolled bleeding, NHS England said.
WATCH: Debra Morgan from the Haemophilia Society explains how the new treatment will help
Current treatments for haemophilia can require intravenous infusions multiple times a week, but the new drug will cut treatment times to a single injection given once a week or fortnight.
Around 2,000 people will benefit.