Jesy Nelson celebrates plans for rollout of SMA screenings | UK News

Jesy Nelson has spoken of her pride after it was announced screenings for spinal muscular atrophy will begin earlier than planned.

The former Little Mix star has campaigned for all newborn babies to be screened for the rare condition after her twins, Ocean Jade and Story Monroe Nelson, were diagnosed.

They were found to have the condition, which causes progressive muscle wastage, which Nelson says means they will probably never walk, after being born prematurely last year.

The 34-year-old launched a petition for more health checks for babies, appearing on Sky News to promote her campaign, and it reached 100,000 signatures.

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Health Secretary Wes Streeting has now announced the checks will be rolled out as part of in-screening evaluations from this October, rather than January 2027.

These are used to test proposed screening programmes before they are adopted nationally.

In a letter to Nelson and Giles Lomax, the boss of the SMA UK charity, Mr Streeting said he was keen on a full rollout and promised to keep them updated.

Nelson, a patron of the charity, celebrated the news in a post on Instagram.

“I am so proud, as this is a major milestone for the SMA community,” she said.

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Early treatment can help prevent some of the most devastating consequences of her twins’ condition.

They have had a one-off infusion that puts a missing gene back into their body to stop other muscles from dying, however, they will not be able to regain any muscles that have already died.

Mr Lomax said his charity would continue to work towards a UK-wide rollout of SMA screening, adding: “No baby should be left behind based on where they live.”