Italian woman with genetic disease condemns death threats received after defending animal experiments

An Italian woman suffering from a rare genetic illness has spoken out against the death wishes she was sent after defending the use of animals in medical research.

Caterina Simonsen, from Padua, had posted a photo of herself on Facebook holding the message: “I am 25 thanks to genuine research that includes experiments on animals.”

“Without research, I would have been dead at nine,” she added. “You have gifted me a future.”

After uploading the photo, Ms Simonsen said she received over 500 abusive messages including 30 “death wishes” on the social network.

Now, the 25-year-old has now posted a series of videos responding to the abuse and detailing her illness. She suffers from four separate rare genetic disorders that have left her unable to breathe unaided, she said.

Read the full, original story: Italian woman with genetic disease condemns death threats received after defending animal experiments

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