Controversial conversations are never easy to navigate, regardless of age or experience, especially when engaging with people you love. Since the start of the pandemic, the number of controversial conversations has increased, and the reactions to conflicting opinions have intensified. Social media disputes are often crass, cruel, and filled…
Controversial Conversations: A Chronically Ill Patient’s Perspective
Decline in lung function is slower in people with advanced idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) who start treatment with Ofev (nintedanib) or Esbriet (pirfenidone), although their risk of death remains considerably greater than those with mild to moderate disease, a study based on patient data reported. Data from patient…
Measuring the levels of certain molecules in the blood could be useful for distinguishing idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) from other types of lung disease, according to a recent study. The study, “Serum Biomarkers in Differential Diagnosis of Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis and Connective Tissue Disease-Associated Interstitial Lung Disease,”…
Blocking the activity of a metabolic enzyme called succinate dehydrogenase (SDH) promoted the death of myofibroblasts — the main drivers of pulmonary fibrosis (PF) — and helped to heal persistent lung scarring (fibrosis) in a rat model, a study reported. These benefits were associated with a rescue of the metabolic abnormalities…
As soon as my mom, Holly, was out of the hospital following her bilateral lung transplant, our family began efforts to protect her immunocompromised body. Before she even got the call about available donor lungs, the University of California, San Francisco lung transplant team had educated my family…
Listening for fine crackles — a sound like Velcro strips being separated — during routine lung checks with a stethoscope may help healthcare providers to reach an early diagnosis of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), a Canadian study reports. Doctors are almost 13 times more likely to hear such fine…
The moment my parents, Diana and Jack, were in the clear two weeks after their second COVID-19 vaccine, they hopped on a plane to see their three grandchildren in Illinois. This was about a month shy of my mom’s one-year lung transplant anniversary. Their trip was everything they had…
Stem cells found in human umbilical cords limited lung damage associated with pulmonary fibrosis (PF) by reducing an excessive inflammatory immune response, a recent study of mice has found. Understanding how these stem cells interact with the immune system could improve future PF cell therapies, the researchers noted. The…
The National Organization for Rare Disorders (NORD) is applauding the Biden administration for announcing a rule to protect consumers from surprise medical billing, in a joint statement with 26 other U.S. patient organizations. The interim final rule will implement patient protections required by the No Surprises Act. Surprise…
On Aug. 14, 2020, around 10 p.m., my successful lung transplant was completed. Now I was in the daunting recovery phase. Before being discharged from the hospital, I had to meet three requirements: Walk 1,000 feet without supplemental oxygen. Walk continuously on a treadmill for 30 minutes. Have all my…
