Ted DeVita
Encyclopedia
Ted DeVita was a victim of severe aplastic anemia
who was forced to live in a sterile hospital room for eight and a half years.
His story, along with that of Texas
patient David Vetter
, was used to create the 1976 made-for-TV movie The Boy in the Plastic Bubble
. In the film, John Travolta
played "Tod," a teenaged boy who lived in a sterile bubble due to illness. Ted was 14 when the film, unauthorized by his family, was released. In 2004, the story of Ted's life, illness, and death, and the lasting impact of these events on his family was examined in a memoir by his younger sister, Elizabeth DeVita-Raeburn
, entitled The Empty Room: Surviving the Loss of a Brother or Sister at Any Age.
Ted DeVita was the son of NIH oncologist and researcher Vincent T. DeVita, Jr., MD, who diagnosed his son's illness in 1972. Severe aplastic anemia is a rare disease in which the body is suddenly unable to produce new blood cells and platelets. Its victims have no effective immune system
and must be protected from infection. Ted was admitted to the National Institute of Health Clinical Center. While scientists and physicians tried all known treatments for his condition, Ted was isolated in Building 10, in a "laminar airflow room." This specialized room on "13-East" had been created in 1969 to protect leukemia
patients whose immune systems had been compromised by chemotherapy
. Physicians hoped the sterile room and frequent blood transfusions would sustain him until he recovered spontaneously or an effective treatment was found.
The "laminar airflow room" gave Ted a living space the size of a normal bedroom. He was able to walk around and participate in many normal activities, but could be touched only with gloved hands. He lived surrounded by plastic sheeting containing a door-sized space through which sterilized objects, including food, clothing, and books, and occasionally doctors and nurses, could pass in and out. He was surrounded by a "curtain" of air, a steady outflow of positive air pressure to expel potential pathogen
s.
His family recalls Ted as a bright and curious boy who grew to be a strong-willed teenager. Ted's emotional adjustment to the confinement and isolation was difficult. From a later review of medical notes, his younger sister, Elizabeth DeVita-Raeburn, learned the staff saw Ted as alternately "hostile, angry, and cheery." Especially during the first year, he indulged in tantrums, throwing things out of the sterile area in his room, and creating a cavity in the wall to hide thousands of his hated pills. On the few occasions Ted left his room, he was enclosed in a spacesuit and helmet, with an air pump that expelled pathogens. The suit drew so much attention that he rarely chose to leave. His sister remembers that the only time Ted wasn’t stared at was at a Star Trek
convention.
Ted DeVita died in 1980—his death was not primarily due to aplastic anemia, but was caused by iron overload
from too many transfusions. Treatment for Ted's disease is much more successful today, with a cure rate of up to 80 percent of aplastic anemia patients. Bone marrow transplant
s, transfusions, iron chelating regimens, and brief periods in positive airflow rooms are used in treating these patients.
Aplastic anemia
Aplastic anemia is a condition where bone marrow does not produce sufficient new cells to replenish blood cells. The condition, per its name, involves both aplasia and anemia...
who was forced to live in a sterile hospital room for eight and a half years.
His story, along with that of Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
patient David Vetter
David Vetter
David Phillip Vetter was a boy from Shenandoah, Texas, United States who suffered from a rare genetic disease now known as severe combined immune deficiency syndrome . Forced to live in a sterile environment, he became popular with the media as the boy in the plastic bubble...
, was used to create the 1976 made-for-TV movie The Boy in the Plastic Bubble
The Boy in the Plastic Bubble
The Boy in the Plastic Bubble is a 1976 made-for-TV movie inspired by the lives of David Vetter and Ted DeVita, who lacked effective immune systems. It stars John Travolta, Glynnis O'Connor, Diana Hyland, Robert Reed, and P.J. Soles...
. In the film, John Travolta
John Travolta
John Joseph Travolta is an American actor, dancer and singer. Travolta first became known in the 1970s, after appearing on the television series Welcome Back, Kotter and starring in the box office successes Saturday Night Fever and Grease...
played "Tod," a teenaged boy who lived in a sterile bubble due to illness. Ted was 14 when the film, unauthorized by his family, was released. In 2004, the story of Ted's life, illness, and death, and the lasting impact of these events on his family was examined in a memoir by his younger sister, Elizabeth DeVita-Raeburn
Elizabeth DeVita-Raeburn
Elizabeth DeVita-Raeburn is an American author and journalist who covers science, health, and society. She is the author of The Empty Room, a memoir of the death of her older brother, Ted DeVita, who lived for eight years in a plastic bubble at the National Institute of Health Clinical Center...
, entitled The Empty Room: Surviving the Loss of a Brother or Sister at Any Age.
Ted DeVita was the son of NIH oncologist and researcher Vincent T. DeVita, Jr., MD, who diagnosed his son's illness in 1972. Severe aplastic anemia is a rare disease in which the body is suddenly unable to produce new blood cells and platelets. Its victims have no effective immune system
Immune system
An immune system is a system of biological structures and processes within an organism that protects against disease by identifying and killing pathogens and tumor cells. It detects a wide variety of agents, from viruses to parasitic worms, and needs to distinguish them from the organism's own...
and must be protected from infection. Ted was admitted to the National Institute of Health Clinical Center. While scientists and physicians tried all known treatments for his condition, Ted was isolated in Building 10, in a "laminar airflow room." This specialized room on "13-East" had been created in 1969 to protect leukemia
Leukemia
Leukemia or leukaemia is a type of cancer of the blood or bone marrow characterized by an abnormal increase of immature white blood cells called "blasts". Leukemia is a broad term covering a spectrum of diseases...
patients whose immune systems had been compromised by chemotherapy
Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy is the treatment of cancer with an antineoplastic drug or with a combination of such drugs into a standardized treatment regimen....
. Physicians hoped the sterile room and frequent blood transfusions would sustain him until he recovered spontaneously or an effective treatment was found.
The "laminar airflow room" gave Ted a living space the size of a normal bedroom. He was able to walk around and participate in many normal activities, but could be touched only with gloved hands. He lived surrounded by plastic sheeting containing a door-sized space through which sterilized objects, including food, clothing, and books, and occasionally doctors and nurses, could pass in and out. He was surrounded by a "curtain" of air, a steady outflow of positive air pressure to expel potential pathogen
Pathogen
A pathogen gignomai "I give birth to") or infectious agent — colloquially, a germ — is a microbe or microorganism such as a virus, bacterium, prion, or fungus that causes disease in its animal or plant host...
s.
His family recalls Ted as a bright and curious boy who grew to be a strong-willed teenager. Ted's emotional adjustment to the confinement and isolation was difficult. From a later review of medical notes, his younger sister, Elizabeth DeVita-Raeburn, learned the staff saw Ted as alternately "hostile, angry, and cheery." Especially during the first year, he indulged in tantrums, throwing things out of the sterile area in his room, and creating a cavity in the wall to hide thousands of his hated pills. On the few occasions Ted left his room, he was enclosed in a spacesuit and helmet, with an air pump that expelled pathogens. The suit drew so much attention that he rarely chose to leave. His sister remembers that the only time Ted wasn’t stared at was at a Star Trek
Star Trek
Star Trek is an American science fiction entertainment franchise created by Gene Roddenberry. The core of Star Trek is its six television series: The Original Series, The Animated Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise...
convention.
Ted DeVita died in 1980—his death was not primarily due to aplastic anemia, but was caused by iron overload
Transfusion hemosiderosis
Transfusional hemosiderosis is the accumulation of iron in the liver and/or heart but also endocrine organs, in patients who receive frequent blood transfusions ....
from too many transfusions. Treatment for Ted's disease is much more successful today, with a cure rate of up to 80 percent of aplastic anemia patients. Bone marrow transplant
Bone marrow transplant
Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation is the transplantation of multipotent hematopoietic stem cell or blood, usually derived from bone marrow, peripheral blood stem cells, or umbilical cord blood...
s, transfusions, iron chelating regimens, and brief periods in positive airflow rooms are used in treating these patients.