London’s Great Ormond Street Hospital applied to the High Court on Friday for a new hearing regarding Charlie Gard, in light of fresh evidence concerning potential treatment for the critically ill baby, who has attracted international attention.
Gard, who has a form of mitochondrial disease – a rare genetic condition that causes progressive muscle weakness and brain damage – has gained global interest after his parents lost a long legal battle to give him experimental therapy in the United States.
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On Friday, Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children – where Gard is being cared for – said it wanted the courts to hear new evidence relating to the case.
“Two international hospitals and their researchers have communicated to us as late as the last 24 hours that they have fresh evidence about their proposed experimental treatment,” the hospital said in a statement.
“And we believe, in common with Charlie’s parents, it is right to explore this evidence.”
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Britain’s Supreme Court ruled last month that going to the United States for treatment would prolong the baby’s suffering without any realistic prospect of helping him.
But U.S. President Donald Trump tweeted an offer of help on Monday, a day after Pope Francis offered prayers for Gard and his family. The Vatican-owned paediatric hospital in Rome has also said it is ready to offered to take over the care of the baby.
— Reporting by Costas Pitas, editing by Andy Bruce