Lungs clothed in fresh cells offer new hope for transplant patients

For patients suffering from severe pulmonary diseases including emphysema, lung cancer or fibrosis, transplantation of healthy lung tissue may offer the best chance for survival. The surgical procedure, however, faces two primary challenges: an acute shortage of donor lungs and rejection of transplanted tissue by the recipient’s immune system.

Read more

Study shows new medication effectively treats underlying cause of cystic fibrosis

A new study has confirmed that the drug, ivacaftor (VX-770), significantly improves lung function in some people with cystic fibrosis (CF). The results of the phase III clinical trial study, “A CFTR Potentiator in Patients with Cystic Fibrosis and the G551D Mutation,” led by Bonnie W. Ramsey, MD of Seattle Children’s Research Institute and the University of Washington, were published today in the New England Journal of Medicine.

Read more

Amrubicin improved response rate and progression-free survival vs. topotecan in Phase III trial

Lung cancer patients given amrubicin (Calsed) as a second-line therapy had a significantly improved response rate and longer progression-free survival than patients treated with topotecan (Hycamtin), according to research presented at the 14th World Conference on Lung Cancer in Amsterdam, hosted by the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC).

Read more

Researchers move closer to identifying new class of asthma, COPD drugs

ATS 2011, DENVER – Researchers in Baltimore have identified new compounds whichrelax airway muscles and may provide relief from shortness of breath for patients with COPD and asthma. The bitter-tasting compounds are at least as, if not more, effective than currently available agents used to manage these diseases, and may present new options for treatment.

Read more

LSUHSC research discovery may block ALS disease process

New Orleans, LA –In the first animal model of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), developed by Dr. Udai Pandey, Assistant Professor of Genetics at LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans, Dr. Pandey’s lab has found in fruit flies that blocking the abnormal movement of a protein made by a mutated gene called FUS also blocks the disease process. The research is available online in the Advanced Access section of the journal Human Molecular Genetics website, posted on April 12, 2011. It will be published in an upcoming issue of the journal.

Read more

Experimental treatment for COPD in development

Stimulating lung’s defenses against bacterial infection

Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health have developed a non-steroid based strategy for improving the lung’s innate immune defense and decreasing inflammation that can be a problem for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). In a study published in the April 13 edition of the journal Science Translational Medicine, the Johns Hopkins researchers targeted the Nrf2 pathway using sulforaphane, an ingredient that is present in broccoli in a precursor form, to enhance the Nrf2 pathway in the lung that mediates the uptake of bacteria. Exacerbation of symptoms due to bacterial lung infection is a common problem for many COPD patients. The current study used inflammatory cells from lungs of COPD patients and mice. The experimental therapy is also being studied in a clinical trial.

Read more

UCSF researchers identify promising new treatment for childhood leukemia

An experimental drug lessens symptoms of a rare form of childhood leukemia and offers significant insight into the cellular development of the disease, according to findings from a new UCSF study. The mouse model research could spearhead the development of new leukemia therapies and paves the way for future clinical trials in humans.

Read more

Bone drug zoledronic acid may help prevent spread of early lung cancer

European Multidisciplinary Conference in Thoracic Oncology news

A drug that is currently used to help treat bone metastases in patients with lung cancer could also be useful at an earlier stage of treatment, to prevent the cancer from spreading in the first place, Italian researchers have found.

Read more

Scientists to sequence DNA of cystic fibrosis superbug

The bacterium, called Pseudomonas aeruginosa, is the most common cause of persistent and fatal lung infections in cystic fibrosis patients. Scientists at Liverpool identified a particularly virulent strain of the bacteria that is transmissible between patients. The Liverpool Epidemic Strain (LES), referred to as a cystic fibrosis ’superbug’, can cause aggressive infection and results in progressive lung decline.

Read more

Discovery could lead to new therapies for asthma, COPD

Researchers have proved that a single “master switch” enzyme, known as aldose reductase, is key in producing excess mucous that clogs the airways of people with asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The enzyme’s action can be blocked by drugs whose safety has been shown in clinical trials for other diseases – a discovery that could improve therapies for the 510 million people worldwide suffering from asthma and COPD.

Read more

Next Page »