Lung Disease News and Research

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Illness for uninsured adults in the United States nearing retirement age spells financial disaster: Study

For the more than four million uninsured adults in the United States nearing retirement age, a serious illness often spells financial disaster, according to a recent study.

15 Oct 2009

National study shows people who work after retiring experience fewer major diseases

Retirees who transition from full-time work into a temporary or part-time job experience fewer major diseases and are able to function better day-to-day than people who stop working altogether, according to a national study. And the findings were significant even after controlling for people's physical and mental health before retirement.

14 Oct 2009

University of Nottingham pioneers new type of MRI scan

People with chronic lung disease and asthma could soon be offered better treatment thanks to a new type of Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scan being pioneered at The University of Nottingham.

13 Oct 2009

COPD Management Program for South Region TRICARE beneficiaries

Humana Military Healthcare Services, a wholly owned subsidiary of Humana Inc., announced today an additional benefit available for South Region TRICARE beneficiaries. The Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) Management Program offers telephonic education and coaching by dedicated registered nurses.

12 Oct 2009

Hope for deadly smoking addiction; federal Tobacco Act amendment on the anvil

The Canadian Lung Association today congratulated Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq and all Parliamentarians on the passage of Bill C-32, an Act to Amend the federal Tobacco Act. The passage of the Act is a key win in the fight against smoking and the tobacco industry.

7 Oct 2009

NTMs: Rising cause of severe lung diseases

Nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) are environmental organisms found in both water and soil that can cause severe pulmonary (lung) disease in humans. Pulmonary NTM is on the rise in the United States, according to a large study of people hospitalized with the condition.

25 Sep 2009

Tregs to set the pace of recovery after serious lung injury

After more than 50 experiments in mice, medical scientists at Johns Hopkins have mapped out the basic steps taken by a particular set of white blood cells in setting the pace of recovery after serious lung injury.

22 Sep 2009

Genetically removing the osteopontin protein prevents lung diseases

In a development that could lead to a novel approach to the treatment of a devastating lung disease, biochemists at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston report they are the first to link the osteopontin (OPN) protein to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

16 Sep 2009

Gentic circuits that cause mucous hyper-production identified

Scientists have identified the main genetic switch that causes excessive mucous in the lungs, a discovery that one day could ease suffering for people with chronic lung diseases like asthma and cystic fibrosis, or just those fighting the common cold.

15 Sep 2009

Genetic switch that causes excessive mucus in the lungs identified

Scientists have identified the main genetic switch that causes excessive mucus in the lungs, a discovery that one day could ease suffering for people with chronic lung diseases like asthma and cystic fibrosis, or just those fighting the common cold.

15 Sep 2009

Clinical studies reveal treatment with pirfenidone is safe and well-tolerated

InterMune, Inc. (Nasdaq: ITMN) today announced that the results of a comprehensive review of safety data from four clinical studies were presented at the 2009 European Respiratory Society Annual Congress in Vienna, Austria by Dr. Ulrich Costabel of the Ruhrlandklinik, Essen, Germany.

14 Sep 2009

Positive results from Transave's Phase II clinical trial of ARIKACE in non-CF bronchiectasis patients

Transave, Inc., today reported positive results from a Phase II clinical trial in non-cystic fibrosis (CF) bronchiectasis patients for its lead investigational drug, ARIKACE(TM) (liposomal amikacin for inhalation). The Phase II data indicated that ARIKACE, delivered once daily for 28 consecutive days, demonstrated superior clinical benefit compared to placebo as measured by patient and physician reported outcomes and reduction in Pseudomonas aeruginosa density.

14 Sep 2009

Phase 3 trial of ataluren commences

PTC Therapeutics, Inc. (PTC) today announced the initiation of a Phase 3 trial of ataluren (formerly PTC124(R)), an investigational protein restoration therapy in patients with nonsense mutation cystic fibrosis (nmCF).

11 Sep 2009

A non-invasive test for cystic fibrosis is the goal of University Of Arizona researchers

Researchers from The University of Arizona Colleges of Pharmacy and Medicine are teaming up to try to invent a novel non-invasive lung test for cystic fibrosis sufferers.

10 Sep 2009

Preventive-care TB therapy is cost-effective for patients

University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) researchers have found that the cost of preventive antibiotic tuberculosis (TB) therapy for patients infected by human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is generally less expensive than the reported cost of treating newly confirmed TB cases.

10 Sep 2009

Inspire Pharmaceuticals wins award for its denufosol tetrasodium program

Inspire Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced today it received the North Carolina Health & Life Sciences Award in the category of “Breakthrough Research” for its denufosol tetrasodium program for cystic fibrosis (CF).

9 Sep 2009

Genetic risk factor involved in cystic fibrosis discovered

Researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have discovered a genetic risk factor for severe liver disease in people with cystic fibrosis. Those who carry a particular variant of the SERPINA1 gene (also known as alpha-1-antitrypsin or alpha-1-antiprotease) are five times more likely to develop cirrhosis and other liver complications than patients who carry the normal version of the gene.

9 Sep 2009

Exposure to air pollution can cause heart attack

It's well known that measures such as exercise, a healthy diet and not smoking can help reduce high blood pressure, but researchers at the University of Michigan Health System have determined the very air we breathe can be an invisible catalyst to heart disease.

8 Sep 2009

Chronic pediatric cough linked to reflux and allergies

New research shows that chronic cough in children is most often caused by gastroesophageal reflux and allergies. Researchers from Tulane University in New Orleans, LA, evaluated 40 patients aged 5 to 12 years with chronic cough (> 8 weeks in duration) with no obvious cause. Each patient underwent extensive multispecialty testing. Results showed that reflux was the single most commonly associated factor of chronic cough by itself (27.5 percent), followed by allergy (22.5 percent).

8 Sep 2009

COPD patients to have better protection against pneumonia with new vaccine

A new vaccine against pneumonia may offer better protection from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients than the currently accepted vaccine, according to recent research that will be published in the September 15 issue of the American Journal of the Respiratory and Critical Care Journal, a publication of the American Thoracic Society.

8 Sep 2009