A 23-year-old Louisiana man, Daniel Cressy, has become the first person in the Gulf South to be functionally cured of sickle cell disease using the gene-editing therapy Casgevy .
Cressy, who was diagnosed with the disease as an infant, had endured severe pain crises throughout his childhood, often requiring six to twelve hospitalizations per year . The disease also threatened his dream of becoming a commercial airline pilot, as the Federal Aviation Administration would not medically certify him due to his diagnosis .
The two-year journey involved collecting Cressy’s stem cells, sending them to a laboratory in Scotland where they were edited using CRISPR-Cas9 technology, and then infusing the modified cells back into his body at Manning Family Children’s Hospital in New Orleans . On June 22, 2026, he was declared functionally cured .
“God has given me another life, a new chapter. I was able to experience a second birthday, something that most people will never experience,” Cressy said . His doctor confirmed: “Today, his cells are no longer sickling. Today, his hemoglobin is normal for the first time in his life” .
Cressy has now founded the Privileged Pilots Project, a nonprofit dedicated to helping aspiring pilots facing health and life challenges. He remains focused on his dream of becoming a commercial pilot.
