Phoenix, Arizona — Nathaniel Schumann, a nonverbal autistic boy, began speaking in full sentences at age 8 after taking leucovorin, a drug that has shown promise in children with cerebral folate deficiency. For years, Nathaniel had understood everything but struggled to communicate, leaving his parents frustrated and concerned.
“He had a laundry list of everything that upset him throughout the years,” said Dr. Kathleen Schnier, Nathaniel’s mother. “People weren’t having him be part of the conversation or just assuming he wasn’t understanding it. But it was all there.”
Now 13, Nathaniel is part of a growing group of children benefiting from leucovorin, a generic and inexpensive medication that helps deliver vitamin B9 to the brain more effectively.
Early Challenges and Diagnosis
The second child of Kathleen and Paul Schumann, Nathaniel was a social and babbling toddler, making eye contact and engaging easily with his surroundings. But as he grew, he began missing developmental milestones…