The Importance of Sharing Our Stories During Pulmonary Fibrosis Awareness Month

I’ve been writing this column for almost six years. Throughout that time, I’ve had the privilege of interacting with other patients living with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), a progressive and life-threatening lung disease. While IPF is considered a rare disease, it doesn’t always feel that way given how many…

NP-120 (ifenprodil), an investigational treatment for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) and chronic cough, continues to demonstrate an ability to preserve lung function and ease cough, according to analyses of secondary goals in a Phase 2a trial. Most of these analyses related to patient-reported outcomes, supplementing positive top-line data from…

One of the more difficult parts of my journey has been remembering those I’ve met or learned of who’ve passed away from pulmonary fibrosis (PF). There are so many. It’s why we must all move forward in pursuit of treatments and a cure. The pulmonary fibrosis community must…

Focusing on raising awareness of interstitial lung diseases (ILDs), nine organizations, including the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation (PFF), are working together to present the second annual ILD Day, taking place Sept. 14. More than 50,000 Americans are diagnosed every year with ILD, a group of lung diseases marked by inflammation…

AstraZeneca’s experimental oral therapy saracatinib — originally developed to treat certain cancers — was found to be at least as effective, and even superior to the approved therapies Ofev (nintedanib) and Esbriet (pirfenidone) in treating idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) in several preclinical models of the respiratory disease. Saracatinib worked…

During my pulmonary fibrosis journey, I learned that one of the best things I could do for myself was to become an active voice on my care team. As a patient diagnosed with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) more than five years ago, I wanted to know more about this…

From sharing stories and “going blue,” to offering yoga sessions and hosting community walks, patients and supporters are set to mark Pulmonary Fibrosis Awareness Month, held annually in September. The effort is also aimed at raising research funds to fight pulmonary fibrosis (PF), which is part of a group…

By definition, a progressive illness is one that worsens over time. When I was diagnosed in 2016 with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), a life-threatening and progressive lung disease, I was told by a pulmonologist that simple tasks would become difficult as the fibrosis in my lungs worsened. Before IPF,…

The levels of transforming growth factor-beta-induced protein (TGFBI), a molecule involved in lung development and cancer, are significantly increased in cellular and rodent models of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), a study showed. TGFBI was also found to mediate the pro-scarring effects of transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta) — a protein that plays…

My inspiration for this column came from looking out my window, which was built high up and close to the ceiling. I call it “God’s Window,” because every morning, I can look up to the heavens, and every night, I can see the stars. It’s beautiful when the sun is…