Sammy Basso, a biologist and progeria advocate, has died at age 28

Update: I learnt today (7/8/2024) or my memory was refreshed that many individuals suffering from progeria do not survive teenage years. (Source)

RIP

I don't remember when I first became aware of this man and his rare-disease. Indeed, he seemed to have embraced humor to live his life.

"We generally don’t think of rare-disease advocacy as funny. But of the many qualities apparent to anyone who met Sammy Basso, a biologist and spokesperson for the progeria patient community, who died suddenly on Saturday at 28, perhaps the most disarming was his ability to find laughter in almost anything. One April Fool’s Day, he posted a video about his doctors putting him on a diet — an absurdity for someone whose genetic disorder prevented him from gaining weight. “A seafood diet. When I see food, I eat!” he said, pressing a button for a ba-dum-tss, grinning into the camera. ..."

How Sammy Basso’s short life changed rare disease research | STAT