A major grant could make Atlanta one of the top autism research centers in the world. Governor Nathan Deal announced on Thursday that the Marcus Autism Center has been awarded an $8.3 million grant from the National Institutes of Health.
The grant will help create an Autism Center of Excellence at Marcus, drawing in experts from Emory School of Medicine, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta and the Yerkes National Primate Research Center.
Marcus researchers say their focus is on early detection. It's estimated that one in every 84 Georgia children has a disorder that falls on the autism spectrum.
The grant will help fund as many as 25 researchers and physicians, who are looking at innovative ways to detect autism in babies and toddlers before they ever begin show signs of a problem.
Eight-year-old Walt Deriso is autistic.
His parents Walt and Anna first noticed changes when he was almost two and stopped making eye contact, or saying the words he knew.
It took a year to get a diagnosis, and two more to get Walt into the early intervention program at Marcus Autism Center,
By then, Walt was five, and his dad says, locked inside himself.
"He couldn't speak more than three words. He wasn't potty trained. He couldn't sit still and attend to any task for literally more than seconds. Couldn't communicate with anyone," said Walt Deriso.
Marcus Center therapists started working intensely with Walt five days a week, six hours a day, pushing him to connect and communicate.
A visiting artist taught Walt to draw all the things he couldn't yet say. For the first time, his parents could understand what was going on inside Walt's head.
"So we could see that he liked Thomas the Train, he loved going to Target, he liked playing baseball, he loved going to the beach," said Walt Deriso.
Walt still struggles. Social situations, sudden changes, or loud noises or bright lights can throw him off, and his dad can't help but wonder how differently things would've been different if Walt had been diagnosed earlier.
Right now, children can be diagnosed between the ages of two and three.
But Marcus Autism Center Director and nationally known autism expert Dr. Ami Klin says the median age of diagnosis is about five, and lower income children are often diagnosed much later than that.
"Which basically means that we are missing an opportunity that would could significantly alter the life-course of these children's development," said Klin.
Dr. Klin says the $8.3 million NIH grant will push forward innovative research projects. One of them is testing eye-tracking technology in infants and toddlers to look for the first, subtle signs of autism before the disorder gets at foothold.
"It gives us a tremendous advantage, because autism is not inevitable, and the feeling is that autism creates itself in the first few years of life," said Klin.
In just three years at Marcus, Walt's parents say he's come so far that they forget he has autism. And they say this place and the work done there have given them something they didn't have: hope.
"Marcus has absolutely changed Walt's life, but it's also changed our immediate family and extended family's life," said Deriso. "Because they've given us the gift of our child and a relationship with him."
Klin says the goal is to one make sure that every baby is screened for an autism spectrum disorder because he believes that early intervention will be a game changer for so many children facing lifelong challenges.
Friday, May 17 2013 6:28 PM EDT2013-05-17 22:28:40 GMT
Melanoma is considered the deadliest form of skin cancer. A veteran dermatologist says he used to see three to five melanomas a year. Now, he says, he sees that many in a week!
Melanoma is considered the deadliest form of skin cancer. A veteran dermatologist says he used to see three to five melanomas a year. Now, he says, he sees that many in a week!
Thursday, May 16 2013 11:00 PM EDT2013-05-17 03:00:47 GMT
A new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows millions of American kids suffer from mental health problems. Experts believe as many as 20 percent of American children are affected.
A new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows millions of American kids suffer from mental health problems. Experts believe as many as 20 percent of American children are affected.
Thursday, May 16 2013 12:02 AM EDT2013-05-16 04:02:20 GMT
Hundreds of American troops have lost a leg or arm in Afghanistan because of improvised explosive devices or homemade bombs.
Hundreds of American troops have lost a leg or arm in Afghanistan because of improvised explosive devices or homemade bombs. It was 29-year-old John Kremer's job to find those hidden bombs, and safely destroy them. That's what the Buford man was trying to do, when one of them exploded right under his feet.
Wednesday, May 15 2013 6:42 PM EDT2013-05-15 22:42:54 GMT
"You're fired!" Those are two words you never want to hear from anyone, especially your own doctor. But that can happen when patients and physicians don't see eye-to-eye.
"You're fired!" Those are two words you never want to hear from anyone, especially your own doctor. But that can happen when patients and physicians don't see eye-to-eye.
Tuesday, May 14 2013 7:48 AM EDT2013-05-14 11:48:46 GMT
There are more than 31 million Americans enrolled in Medicare Part D. And according to a recent survey, more than a third are worried about prescription drug costs.
There are more than 31 million Americans enrolled in Medicare Part D. And according to a recent survey, more than a third are worried about prescription drug costs.
Monday, May 13 2013 6:08 PM EDT2013-05-13 22:08:35 GMT
It was a risky delivery: a young mother who'd lost one baby at birth was delivering her second child by C-section.
It was a risky delivery: a young mother who'd lost one baby at birth was delivering her second child by C-section. She was surrounded by more than a dozen specialists and nurses. But this high stakes birth wasn't in a hospital operating room. It was at Zoo Atlanta.
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