News

Health Canada has issued a safety warning on Boehringer Ingelheim’s idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis therapy Ofev (nintedanib) after patients in a number of countries developed liver injuries and one died. IPF patients should stop taking Ofev and seek medical assistance if they develop signs of liver damage, Canadian officials said. Those…

Owlstone Medical is among nine finalists of the IPF Catalyst Challenge to receive $1 million to fund research into idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). If it wins, the British company will use the money to promote research into identifying IPF-linked biomarkers in patients’ breath via its proprietary Breath…

Interim results of a Phase 2 clinical trial found an investigative antibody, tralokinumab, failed to demonstrate potential to improve the respiratory function of patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). Based on this final, the study has been closed. This and additional safety data were reported in the study “…

NuMedii is advancing the field of personalized medicine for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) by creating a new advisory board that includes some of the world’s leading specialists in interstitial lung disease to guide a new approach to drug discovery based on artificial intelligence (AI). The California-based company has…

Bellerophon Therapeutics has enrolled the first pulmonary hypertension patient in a Phase 2b clinical trial of its INOpulse nitric oxide delivery system. The trial (NCT03267108) of the blood-vessel-widening device will cover people with pulmonary hypertension associated with interstitial lung disease, or PH-ILD. This includes people with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis,…

The protein FoxO3 plays a central role in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, according to a study reporting that a therapy that scientists are testing for cancer could rein in the protein. One of the hallmarks of IPF is overproduction of cells known as fibroblasts and myofibroblasts that alter the structure of lungs, worsening…

Throughout 2017, Pulmonary Fibrosis News Today reported daily discoveries, therapeutic developments, and events related to pulmonary fibrosis. Here, we review the top 10 most-read articles of 2017, with a brief description of what made them interesting and relevant to PF patients, family members, and caregivers. No. 10 – Esbriet’s Efficacy…

A cancer drug in clinical development might be used to treat pulmonary fibrosis (PF), or as a starting point to develop better antifibrotic treatments, German researchers suggest. Their study, “FoxO3 an important player in fibrogenesis and therapeutic target for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis,” appeared in the journal EMBO Molecular Medicine. In it,…

Chest pain may be a neglected symptom of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), finds a Finnish study that also suggests using the modified Medical Research Council (mMRC) dyspnea (shortness of breath) scale to identify IPF patients needing palliative care. The study, “mMRC dyspnoea scale indicates impaired quality…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted orphan drug status to Prometic Life Sciences’ Ryplazim (plasminogen) as a treatment for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. Fewer than 200,000 Americans have IPF, which makes it eligible for orphan status. The designation gives companies incentives to develop drugs for the small markets typical…