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Daniel Cressy is the first person in Louisiana to receive the groundbreaking treatment.
Daniel Cressy says today is a life-changing day.
The 23-year-old man received a gene therapy transfusion Wednesday at Manning Family Children’s Hospital that doctors say should cure his sickle cell disease. It’s a condition he has lived with his entire life. Cressy is the first person in Louisiana and the Southeastern United States to receive this specific type of gene therapy.
“Mentally, it’s something that has me really excited right now that I just got cured of a disease I’ve lived with my whole life,” Cressy said, speaking to WWL through his iPad at the hospital. “I feel great right now, emotionally and physically.”
Cressy’s motivation goes beyond his health. His long-term goal is to become a licensed pilot.
His sickle cell diagnosis had put that goal out of reach, since he could not pass the medical requirements needed for a license. The FAA previously denied his application in 2023 because of his condition.
The denial letter, however, became his roadmap. It outlined that reconsideration could be granted if he submitted documentation showing he had undergone therapy converting sickle cell SS to sickle cell trait in the bone marrow.
“They left me with no other option,” Cressy said. “So now we’re here, being a part of history.”
He said he held the FAA letter in his hand during the procedure as his doctor administered the new cells.
“Next step is to get back in the air,” he said. “That’s where my mind is now.”
Cressy will stay in the hospital for approximately four weeks while doctors monitor whether his body accepts the new cells. He said he expects to know within a month whether the treatment was successful, after which he plans to submit documentation to the FAA for review.
Cressy said he now sees the moment as bigger than his personal ambitions.
“Aviation is just the icing on the cake,” he said. “The big idea is we’re making history, and we’re paving a way for the new generation to come — inspiring with our stories and our ambitions to let everybody know that you can do anything as long as you put your mind to it.”
As for how the day has felt, Cressy said it has not fully sunk in yet.
“I think tonight is really going to hit me when I’m alone in my room,” he said.
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