My quest to cure prion disease — before it's too late | Sonia Vallabh

TED Health

TED

Health & Fitness, Fitness, Shoshana Ungerleider, Medicine, How To Be Healthier, Ted Shoshana, Ted Talks Health

4.2 • 1.5K Ratings

🗓️ 16 July 2024

⏱️ 19 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Biomedical researcher Sonia Vallabh's life was turned upside down when she learned she had the genetic mutation for a rare and fatal illness, prion disease, that could strike at any time. Thirteen years later, her search for a cure has led to new insights about how to catch and prevent disease — and how to honor our grandest, most mysterious inheritance: our brains.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Ted Audio Collective.
0:02.0	This is Ted Health, a podcast from the TED Audio Collective.
0:09.0	I'm your host Dr. Shoshana Ungerlighter. a podcast from the TED Audio Collective.
0:13.0	I'm your host Dr. Shoshana Ungerlighter.
0:15.6	Imagine receiving a letter from your future self
0:19.2	that changes the trajectory of your entire life. For biomedical researcher Sonia Balag, this wasn't a thought
0:27.0	experiment, but a reality that launched her on an extraordinary quest. In her powerful TED 2024 talk, Sonia shares how a personal diagnosis kick-started her journey
0:38.8	into the world of science and medicine.
0:42.0	As she races against a ticking clock, Sonia's story illuminates the
0:46.4	audacity and humility required to tackle the unknown. Hers is a tale of
0:51.9	love, loss, and the relentless pursuit of a brighter future, one that might
0:57.1	just redefine what's possible in the realm of genetic medicine.
1:00.9	But before we dive in, a quick break to hear from our sponsors.
1:05.0	And now Sonia Volub takes the TED stage.
1:08.0	I'm here because of a letter I got 13 years ago,
1:13.6	a letter from the future.
1:16.2	It's a predictive genetic test report,
1:19.0	and it's at the heart of this sort of red red pill blue pill moment
1:23.1	when my life forked into.
1:26.3	Before I tell you about that,
1:28.2	I want to show you two moments from my life back then.
1:31.9	This is moment number one. It's August 2009. I'm marrying this
	...

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