Scientists at the University of Nottingham, in the U.K., are asking pulmonary fibrosis (PF) patients — many of whom donate “gifts” of cells and samples — and their caregivers to help define the institution’s future research goals. These researchers, from the university’s faculty of medicine and health sciences and…
Axatilimab, an investigational therapy being developed by Syndax Pharmaceuticals, has been granted orphan drug designation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as a potential treatment for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). The FDA gives orphan drug status to medications that have the potential to substantially improve care…
Thanks to a $5 million donation from a grateful patient, Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) Health is expanding its programs to treat those with lung diseases like pulmonary fibrosis (PF). After his escape from Yugoslavia in the 1950s, Bill Belanich came to the U.S., where he took a job installing…
Outpatient pulmonology appointments are common for people with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). The frequency of these appointments varies, depending on how the disease progresses, but spending a day at the hospital for various tests is familiar to many of us. Since my IPF diagnosis in 2016, the number of these…
Amgen will acquire Rodeo Therapeutics, along with its preclinical program focused on the development of potential therapies for inflammatory and fibrotic diseases like pulmonary fibrosis (PF). “With decades of experience in developing, manufacturing and commercializing innovative therapies for patients suffering from a broad range of immunologic diseases and…
Two approved anti-fibrotics are proving to be safe and effective in treating idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), a study with real-world data reports. The data showed Esbriet (pirfenidone) and Ofev (nintedanib) increased progression-free survival, slowed down lung function decline, and reduced mortality in IPF patients. Ofev appears to…
Tyvaso (inhaled treprostinil) has been approved as the first treatment to improve exercise ability in people with pulmonary hypertension associated with interstitial lung disease (PH-ILD) in the U.S. PH-ILD is an umbrella term that encompasses idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) and other lung fibrotic-related conditions. “The regulatory approval of…
A protein linked to lung inflammation, known as Krebs von den Lungen-6, or KL-6, was found to be a reliable biomarker for the prognosis of patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) and lung cancer, predicting IPF progression and indicating an individual’s response to treatment, an analysis shows. The results…
March 11 was the one-year anniversary of the World Health Organization declaring COVID-19 a pandemic. Since then, I’ve been reflecting. I’ve learned a lot this year about myself and others. The hardships we’ve all faced have shown many of us how resilient and adaptable we can be. Many of…
As anyone affected by a rare disease knows, treating the illness while trying to go about everyday life is an expensive undertaking. But exactly how expensive — in terms of direct and indirect costs across rare disease populations — might still come as a surprise: almost…
Get regular updates to your inbox.
