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 PORTLAND, Ore. (Ivanhoe Broadcast News) -- Imagine having bones so weak that you break them by simply coughing or landing too hard when you jump. Between 20,000 and 50,000 Americans have a genetic disorder commonly known as brittle bone disease. There is no treatment, but scientists are testing a drug already approved for another bone disorder.
Jimmy Foxx was born with legs but by age, 18 he'd broken them 24 times! "I'd try to play basketball; they'd throw me the ball, and it would land in my lap, and I'd break my femur," he says. "And I could see that they were an anchor that I was dragging around."
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Having doctors amputate his legs actually gave Foxx the chance to do normal things.
"When I was a little boy in physical therapy in the whirlpool, I broke my leg moving my leg against the motion of the water, you know, but within two months of having my legs cut off, I was at the YMCA learning how to swim," he says.
 Foxx's disease is called osteogenesis imperfecta, or OI. It prevents collagen from forming correctly in the body.
"It's a disease that results in brittle bones, so fractures happen much more commonly than they should," endocrinologist Eric Orwoll, M.D., of Oregon Health & Science University in Portland, tells Ivanhoe.
In mild cases, the skeleton looks almost normal, but in severe cases, fractures can cause deformities and a shortened stature.
Oregon Health & Science University physician assistant Jan Reeder, MS, says, "There's a large population of adults with OI, and there's no treatment. We need something for them."
That something could be a drug called Forteo. It's approved for osteoporosis. Foxx gives himself an injection every day as part of a clinical trial.
"In osteoporosis, Forteo does work by forming new bone and strengthens the bone and reduces fracture," Dr. Orwoll says.
 Because his upper body is so strong, Foxx hasn't had a break in a while. He hopes the new drug will give him even more strength.
So far, Dr. Orwoll has treated three OI patients with Forteo and all have shown improvement. The drug did cause bone cancer in rats when given at very high doses. Although humans haven't developed the same cancers, the FDA has limited its use to two years and does not allow children to take it.
This article was reported by Ivanhoe.com, who offers Medical Alerts by e-mail every day of the week. To subscribe, go to: http://www.ivanhoe.com/newsalert/.
If you would like more information, please contact:
Eric Orwoll, MD
Oregon Health & Science University
Portland, OR
orwoll@ohsu.edu
http://www.brittlebone.org
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