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On an upcoming ABC program, Katie Couric will feature Carly Kudzia, a little girl fighting a brave battle with a rare, fatal disease. Progeria, which affects 100 children worldwide and 24 in the United States, causes its sufferers to age a decade for every year they live, and most pass away from a heart attack or a stroke. In spite of the grim nature of the illness, Carly is not a little girl who is resigned to her fate, but in the words of her mother, Heather, concerning her four-year old daughter, “There are some things Carly can’t do, but there are a lot more things she can do.” Heather explained Carly’s excitement at traveling to New York City from her home in Ohio to be filmed for the Katie Couric Show. She hopes that the program will allow others to understand this rare condition that few have even heard of. The show will appear on Monday on ABC.
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While more awareness needs to be raised about this deadly illness, and a cure is still elusive, there is an increasing number of researchers working on a treatment for Progeria. Just a handful of scientists were studying the disease a few years ago, and now around 100 researchers from across the globe are conducting research for a cure. In addition to raising awareness on the Katie Couric show, the family holds a yearly Carly’s Party for the Cure on her birthday, September 28th. In the last 3 years, they raised $150, 000 for the Progeria Research Foundation.
Couric is best-known for having been one of the first solo female news anchors and hosting shows on all three major networks. Her father, John Martin Couric, was a news editor and public relations executive. Her mother, Elinor Tulle was a part-time writer. Couric’s maternal grandparents were Jewish immigrants from Germany, but she was raised Presbyterian.
In addition to her hosting programs on all three major networks, Couric has raised awareness about colorectal cancer, and for her efforts, won an honorary doctor of science from Case Western Reserve University and was awarded a Doctor of Humane Letters from Boston University. Couric also hosted a Sesame Street special called “When Families Grieve, ” to help children deal with loss.
