Jab to ‘cure’ genetic heart conditions that cause sudden death could be just a few years away. An international team of researchers is developing the first cures for inherited diseases of the heart muscle by rewriting DNA with the aim of editing or silencing faulty genes.

A “once in a generation” flat tire that could “cure” the genetic heart conditions that cause sudden death is just a few years away.

An international team of researchers is developing the first cures for inherited diseases of the heart muscle by rewriting DNA with the aim of editing or silencing faulty genes.

The British Heart Foundation (BHF) awarded them £30 million to fund their research.

The hope is that within a few years a “cure” injection could be given to patients like a shot in the arm, and could be used to prevent disease in family members who carry the same faulty gene.

Hereditary conditions of the heart muscle are driven by different abnormalities in the heart, but can cause sudden death or progressive heart failure.

Every week in the UK, 12 people under the age of 35 die from an undiagnosed heart condition, most often caused by an inherited disease of the heart muscle, also known as genetic cardiomyopathy.

All people with genetic cardiomyopathies have a 50-50 risk of passing on defective genes to each of their children, and often multiple members of the same family develop heart failure, need a heart transplant, or die at a young age.

“There will be one or two in each school,” he told a briefing. “Each GP surgery will have multiple patients with these conditions, but there is a wide range of severity.”

“This is our once-in-a-generation opportunity to relieve families of the constant worry of sudden death, heart failure and the possible need for a heart transplant.