Born 21 September 1971, David Phillip Vetter was born with a hereditary disease which would affect his entire life - severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID). It is a rare disease that involves defective antibody responses and results in an impaired immune system. The immune system is so compromised that it is effectively considered absent, leading to patients suffering immensely from something as simple as the common cold which could, and very often does, turn lethal.
David's parents, Carol Ann and David Joseph, previously had a son who was also born with the disease and sadly passed away at seven months old. Doctors informed them that if they have another boy there was a 50/50 chance that he would be born with SCIDs, and unfortunately the coin toss landed on the wrong side. David was immediately placed in a sterilized cocoon bed prepared especially for him, and he would spend the rest of his life in this plastic bubble with media outlets cruelly referring to him as "Bubble Boy".
Join Hayley this week as she recounts the incredible life of young David Vetter. Learn everything from the time of his birth to his unfortunate passing just 12 years later, including how objects were heavily sterilised to rid them entirely of germs, how NASA helped to develop his own containment suit that would allow him to leave the house, and how his passing resulted in him saving the lives of countless children who would have been born with SCIDs.
This episode was hosted by Hayley O'Connor and joined by Arron Keegan and Conor Daly. The intro and outro music - Strollin' Along - was recorded by David Renda. Join our Discord server and follow us on social media by following the links below!
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Songs used in order:
1) Ji Pyeongkeyon, "Sad Romance", (2002).
2) Barry White, "Can't Get Enough of Your Love Babe", (1974).
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Sources & Further Reading:
- Grabowski & Tortora, "Principles of Anatomy and Physiology" (1993).
- McVivker, Steve, "Bursting the Bubble" (1997).
- Murphy, Mary Ada, "Bursting the Bubble: The Tortured Life and Untimely Death of David Vetter" (2019).
- PBS, "David Phillip Vetter" (2006).
- PBS, "David Vetter's Life, and Treatments for Immunodeficiency"
- Retro Report, "The Boy in the Bubble" (2016).
- Roane, Kit, "The Boy in the Bubble" (2015).
- The American Experience, "David Vetter's Sister"
