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The future of terminally-ill baby Charlie Gard, the case that has garnered support from figures like Donald Trump and the Pope, is being decided in court.
Here's how it has unfolded so far.
Charlie Gard timeline
- Charlie Gard was born in August 2016
- He was taken to hospital in the September and diagnosed with mitochondrial DNA depletion syndrome
- In March 2017, hospital bosses asked a judge to rule that life support treatment should stop
- In July 2017, Chris Gard and Connie Yates returned to the High Court
Where did it all start?
Charlie was born on August 4, 2016 with a rare genetic disorder called mitochondrial DNA depletion syndrome.
Both of his parents, Chris Gard and Connie Yates, have the faulty RRM2B gene which causes the disorder.
The condition is caused by the disruption of mitochondria, part of the cell that gives energy to key organs like the brain and kidneys.
His parents took him to hospital when he was eight weeks old.
He's currently on life support at Great Ormond Street Hospital in London.
What do doctors say?
They say he has irreversible brain damage, and can't move or breathe by himself.
They believe it's kinder to switch his life support off.
In March this year, his doctors asked the Family Division of the High Court in London to rule that life support treatment should stop.
The court ruled in the doctors' favour and was backed by the Supreme Court and the European Court of Human Rights.
So, is there a cure?
Not in the UK.
There is an experimental treatment available in some countries including the United States.
It's called nucleoside bypass therapy, which his parents say could repair the DNA "and help it synthase again by giving him the naturally occurring compounds that his body isn't able to produce".
But doctors in the UK say the treatment is experimental, and would not help.
Charlie's parents are determined to get the treatment for their son and have raised $2.5 million through crowdfunding to take him to the US.
They've been campaigning for this since January.
There's been high-profile support
US President Donald Trump tweeted his support earlier this month saying:
"If we can help little #CharlieGard, as per our friends in the UK and the Pope, we would be delighted to do so."
Pope Francis has also called for Charlie's parents to be allowed to do everything possible to treat their child.
In a statement, the Vatican press office said Pope Francis, "is following with affection and sadness the case of little Charlie Gard and expresses his closeness to his parents".
"For this he prays that their wish to accompany and treat their child until the end is not neglected," the statement read.
What's happening now?
The matter is back to Britain's High Court, but a decision isn't expected today.
Justice Francis, who delivered the original verdict on the case, has given Charlie's parents less than 48 hours to prove the experimental treatment works.
Chris Gard and Connie Yates stormed out of Thursday's hearing after the judge suggested their argument had not been consistent.
Mr Gard punched a table, while his wife said: "We said he's not in suffering and in pain. If he was we wouldn't be up here fighting for that."
Topics: medical-ethics, health, alternative-medicine, law-crime-and-justice, united-kingdom
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