Radiation targeting the lungs damages alveolar type 2 cells, causing radiation-induced fibrosis — but a factor called Nrf2 is key in helping those cells recover, researchers at Nashville’s Vanderbilt University Medical Center found. Their study, “Loss of Nrf2 promotes alveolar type 2 cell loss in irradiated, fibrotic…
The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) recently awarded a team of researchers at Weill Cornell Medicine a $2.1 million, four-year grant to study the mechanisms that cause scar tissue in the lungs and kidneys. The project aims to discover new molecular targets for the…
The first research projects using data from the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation’s Patient Registry are under way, the foundation announced at an international conference in Nashville that bears its name. A record 895 people attended the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation Summit Nov. 9-11, where doctors and scientists discussed the latest developments in the field.
The National Organization for Rare Disorders (NORD) says it’s “disappointed and dismayed” after the House of Representatives voted 227-205 last week to repeal the Orphan Drug Tax Credit as part of a U.S. tax reform package. A similar package before the Senate Finance Committee does not repeal the credit…
The Montefiore Einstein Center for Heart & Vascular Care has started a lung transplant program, joining an exclusive group of premier surgical programs in New York. Surgeons at the center will focus on people with conditions like pulmonary fibrosis, cystic fibrosis, emphysema and rheumatic diseases. The United Network for…
Despite the availability of approved antifibrotic treatments for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), many patients in Europe do not receive them, partly due to a lack of awareness by physicians or a preference for a “wait and watch” approach in people with stable or milder disease, a survey reveals. Better education…
Inhibiting an inflammation-promoting enzyme known as sialidase slowed lung tissue scarring in mice with pulmonary fibrosis, a study shows. The research indicated that sialidase inhibitors, such as Tamiflu, could be used to treat idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, or IPF. The underlying causes of fibrosis in diseases such as IPF and asthma are still…
U.S. and Canadian researchers have identified a signaling pathway that promotes lung and skin scarring. Although the study involved mice, the team said the pathway is likely involved in the progression of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) in humans as well. Targeting the pathway may be a way to treat IPF and other fibrotic…
The diagnostic potential of the Envisia Genomic Classifier to distinguish idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) from other interstitial lung diseases (ILDs) has once again been demonstrated, this time with data collected in real-world clinical settings. The test, developed by Veracyte, helped improve the accuracy and effectiveness of IPF diagnoses by…
Pulmonary fibrosis treatment OFEV (nintedanib) slows the progression of lung scarring, according to high-resolution scans used in a Phase 3b clinical trial. Computed tomography imaging demonstrated for the first time that six months of Ofev could reduce the progression of patients’ lung fibrosis lesions, compared with a placebo. Two…
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