EN PELIGRO DE EXTINCION

Ayer me sacaron a pasear...
Nos fuimos con José a escuchar la serie de charlas sobre emprendimiento en Stanford.
Y me convencí de que voy a tener que escribir tanto en español como en inglés.
Lo que escuché me conmovió...

Matthew Rabinowitz, PhD

Chief Executive Officer

Dr. Matthew Rabinowitz has had dual careers in industry and academia. He completed his B.A., M.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees at Stanford University, receiving both the Levin and Terman Awards — the highest academic honors offered respectively in engineering and physics — and a graduate fellowship to the school of engineering. While completing his dissertation, Dr. Rabinowitz co-founded an intelligent online merchandizing company, Panop.com, which later sold for $100M. Shortly after, Dr. Rabinowitz started his second company, Rosum, which developed a location technology using TV signals to augment GPS. Rosum received the World Economic Forum “100 Technology Pioneers” award when he was CTO.

In 2003, Dr. Rabinowitz’s life took a turn. A family member had a child born with a genetic disease and the child died. Dr. Rabinowitz experienced firsthand the trauma, stress, and devastation that an unexpected diagnosis of genetic disease can bring to a family and he was moved to action.

Después de que su familia vivió el trauma del nacimiento seguido de la muerte de un bebé con Sindrome de Down y muchas complicaciones adicionales, Mat empezó una compañía que desarrolló análisis geneticos no invasivos que pueden diagnosticar alteraciones genéticas tempranas en el embarazo. Pretende hacerlo cuanto antes para que los padres puedan administrar sus embarazos (manage pregnancy). 

Dear Mat,

Thank you for your dynamic and interesting presentation at Stanford yesterday.

I am sorry to hear that your nice or nephew had such a bad health that prevent him or her from living. I believe that if he or she be around at this moment your way of thinking will change dramatically.

I personally experience trauma and stress when my daughter was born with Down Syndrome. I mourn my expectations and could let go. I was lucky to have a healthy child that in this 4 years has teach me to love and embrace life in a wider way. Above my expectations, I can say.

I'm concern… I fear that if at the moment of your precise diagnosis when you contact the parents you only show them the technical malfunction on their unborn child you may be leading them to terminate a pregnancy and discard a life that is worth living.

I feel that if there is so much energy invested in saving our planet and keeping a wide biodiversity we need to learn to integrate the disabled and give them a chance to survive. When you focus in giving parents information early enough  to manage their pregnancy you need to contemplate that is a scary moment and can get really dark if your words don't bring light and hope into the future.

I write a blog http://puentealmisterio.blogspot.com.

Yesterday before attending the Stanford meeting I published an article about my sister that is 33 years old and makes me very proud. She has Down Syndrome and that doesn't prevent her from working as an aid at a nursery school and teaching dancing classes to her students and saving money for her honeymoon.

It shocked me harder the contrast of what I write and what I heard yesterday in a range of a couple of hours. I feel if I don't advocate to save the entire Down  Syndrome race, who will prevent their extermination? I strongly believe the world is better off thanks to the love they can spread. Please let me tell you a little more about it.

I will love to invite you to my house and meet Palita, my daughter.

But I can also sit down and chat with you where you prefer.

Let me know if there is any possibility.

Thank you,

Lia Aberg Cobo