Share and Follow
AKRON, Ohio (WKBN) Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy is a rare genetic disorder that causes progressive muscle loss in boys. It robs children of their muscle function, often putting them in wheelchairs by their early teens.
One boy from Columbiana County, Ohio, has found hope in groundbreaking gene therapy.
At just nine years old, Jerick MayRobb is already a fighter.
This weekend, he stepped up to the mound not just for the game but for every kid battling Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.
Jerick was diagnosed with Duchenne at age four. At six, he became part of a groundbreaking clinical trial at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus.
Now nine, he’s not just surviving; he’s thriving.
“I’ve been having a lot of fun and I’m really happy that I’m not in a wheelchair yet,” he said. “And hopefully I’m never in one.”
Jerick’s family watched as he battled through treatment.
“To see this positive attitude he had through the entire thing…. I don’t know that, as an adult, I could’ve gone through it with a smile like he did,” said his dad, Zack MayRobb.
These days, Jerick likes to ride his bike, play basketball, and play baseball like his favorite player, Cleveland Guardians star José RamÃrez all things that once seemed out of reach.
“It feels like every day is a dream come true at this point,” his father added. “He’s actively a part of the team, scoring baskets in basketball. He’s making plays in baseball.”
The MayRobbs know the treatment isn’t a cure, but it’s giving their son something just as precious: time.
“Everything you didn’t think was going to happen in his lifetime, we’ve seen it and then some,” said Jerick’s stepmother, Payton MayRobb. “It really makes you appreciate life with him and life in general.”
At Sunday’s Akron Rubber Ducks Game, nearly 140 people from 36 Akron Children’s families were there just steps from the hospital where many of them receive care to watch Jerick throw out the game’s first pitch.
“It gives them hope in a space that feels hopeless,” said Dr. Kathryn Mosher, director of Akron Children’s Hospital’s neuromuscular program.
For the MayRobbs, that hope is already there.
