By Theresa Tamkins, Jessica Klingbaum and Kristen Dahlgren – NBC News
Eye surgeons in the U.S. are inching closer to being able to use a specific type of stem cell transplant to fix a serious eye problem that can cause pain and permanent vision loss.
It was the Fourth of July in 2020 when Nick Kharufeh’s life changed. Just 23 at the time, he was at a family party when an errant firework struck his left eye.
It wasn’t painful, but he couldn’t see out of it. It was so dark outside that his dad couldn’t tell how bad the damage was, so Kharufeh, of Rancho Cucamonga, California, headed inside to ask his mother to take a look. She fainted.