A 24-hour news cycle, a lack of civil discourse, people who believe their needs are a priority, and the stress of a chronic, progressive disease with no cure: These things, and many more, contribute to the noise that fills my every waking hour. When I was diagnosed with…
Finding ways to reduce life’s noise benefits my mental health
My name is Kylene, and if you haven’t read my column before, my husband, Donnie, was diagnosed with pulmonary fibrosis in late 2022. Right now, it’s 5 a.m., and I’m writing from our hotel room. Twice a year, Donnie and I drive two and a half hours to Barnes-Jewish…
Enrollment has finished ahead of schedule in a Phase 2 clinical trial testing Calluna Pharma‘s experimental antibody therapy CAL101 in people with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). The Phase 2 study, dubbed AURORA (NCT06736990), was designed to enroll about 150 adults…
Have you ever woken up in a strange mood and, before your feet hit the floor, found yourself wondering what caused it? I recently experienced that; I was feeling melancholy, and the Dean Lewis song “How Do I Say Goodbye” came to mind. Someone I knew recently passed…
Abnormalities in DNA methylation — a type of genetic modification that can alter the activity of a gene without changing its sequence — may affect a person’s risk of developing idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), according to a new study. The researchers say this work has uncovered “novel roles” for…
“How can I help you?” When was the last time you heard those five simple words? My next question may be even harder to answer: When was the last time you asked someone how you could help them? When I was diagnosed with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis in January…
Sometimes when I think about our life after my husband Donnie’s pulmonary fibrosis (PF) diagnosis, I think of the infamous “pivot” scene from the television show “Friends.” Donnie would be playing the part of Chandler, doing his best to navigate all the obstacles and inch the couch up the…
A protein called PIEZO1, which helps cells in blood vessels detect mechanical forces, plays a key role in driving pulmonary fibrosis (PF), a new study indicates. Findings suggest that blocking the activity of PIEZO1 and the signaling pathway it controls may be a useful strategy for developing new…
A single decision, likely made in a split second by someone I’d never met, saved my life. On the morning of July 9, 2021, I received a call that donor lungs were available for me, and my future went from impossible to possible. When I was diagnosed on Jan.
Last in a series. Read part one. When the tests to determine if I would be diagnosed with pulmonary fibrosis (PF) finally gave me clarity, I thought the hardest part of my journey was behind me. In reality, the diagnosis marked the beginning of a new chapter…
