Reacción a "An investigation alleges that the death of a girl in China was covered up after she was given an experimental gene therapy"

Mei’s tragic story is one of abuse of authority, trust and hope. Mei suffered from Snijders Blok-Campeau syndrome, an ultra-rare condition caused by a mutation in the CHD3 gene, which affects neurodevelopment in paediatric patients. Mei’s parents, concerned for her future, searched hopefully for solutions to their only daughter’s condition. In their search, filled with trust and optimism, they decided to place Mei’s life in the hands of Zilong Qiu, an expert in neurodevelopmental disorders with an impeccable CV, brimming with prestigious titles and brilliant achievements (such as publications in elite scientific journals and positions at top-tier institutions). However, Qiu was blinded by his ambition and desire for glory.

Mei’s parents, Jason and Linda, paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to fund the development of a gene therapy for their daughter. On occasion, certain payments were made through informal arrangements and in the form of personal gifts to Qiu, thereby blurring the line between the personal and the professional—a line which Qiu should have had the good judgement and moral clarity not to cross. Eventually, following exorbitant sums of money and excessive promises made by Qiu to Jason and Linda, Mei received an injection of the gene ‘therapy’ into her spinal fluid, at a dose exceeding the range supported by the available preclinical data. Less than a week after the injection, having developed a fever and signs of acute kidney failure, Mei died of thrombotic microangiopathy, a serious adverse event caused by the experimental treatment. In shock, Jason and Linda asked Qiu not to publish the study detailing the development of the experimental treatment that had caused their daughter’s death.

To this day, the article in question—which was published in the prestigious journal Nature on 18 February 2026—remains available, accumulating views and citations, and thus presenting an incomplete picture of the experimental treatment’s safety. Furthermore, Qiu decided to remove any mention of Mei and her parents from the study, including the funding they had provided. Moreover, having achieved what he wanted—a high-profile article in Nature—Qiu stopped responding to Jason and Linda. Unfortunately, it is still unclear what the consequences for Qiu will be. However, it is clear that Mei’s case deserves more attention than it has received. Likewise, stricter oversight and safeguards must be demanded for the development of gene therapies in China, to prevent further researchers, blinded by their ambition, from exploiting the hopes of parents like Jason and Linda.

To mark Mei’s first birthday since her death, whilst Jason was at work, Linda bought a chocolate cupcake and sat on her daughter’s bed, imagining she was sharing the cupcake with her.