Latest Respiratory diseases Stories
Exacerbation severity in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) can be reliably assessed with the COPD Assessment Test™ (CAT), according to a new study from the UK. "There is currently no widely accepted standardized method for assessing symptom severity at exacerbations in COPD patients," said Dr Alex J Mackay, MBBS, MRCP, clinical research fellow at the Academic Unit of Respiratory Medicine, University College London. "Incorporating CAT scores into the assessment of...
From the cherry red tip of a lighted cigarette through the respiratory tract to vital lung cells, the havoc created by tobacco smoke seems almost criminal, activating genes and portions of the immune system to create inflammation that results in life-shortening emphysema, said researchers led by those at Baylor College of Medicine and the Michael E. DeBakey Veterans Affairs Medical Center. In a report online in the journal Science Translational Medicine, the scientists, including two from...
Sufferers of smoking related lung diseases could have their debilitating symptoms reduced following the discovery of a potential new treatment. The discovery, by researchers at the University of Melbourne, Royal Melbourne Hospital, Australia, and the Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, US, could dramatically improve treatments and slow the progression of COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease) which includes the incurable condition emphysema. COPD is a...
SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 12, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Inverseon, Inc., a pharmaceutical company developing drug therapies for the treatment of pulmonary disorders, announced that while it anticipates that its asthma program will advance with non-dilutive grants, it is focused on smoking cessation as the initial indication for INV102. William J. Garner, MD, Chairman, said, "The prioritization of smoking cessation, and also an inhaled COPD program, makes sense for Inverseon given the regulatory...
Smoking may be associated with the development of molecular features of cancer in the large airway epithelium. In the small airway epithelium, molecular cancerization is associated with development of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, according to recent data. "We are striving to find the earliest molecular changes that are induced by environmental stressors — in this case, smoking," said Renat Shaykhiev, M.D., Ph.D., assistant professor of genetic medicine at Weill Cornell Medical...
TUSTIN, Calif., Jan. 9, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Uptake Medical® today announced that it has closed on a Series C funding round. The round was led by Singapore-based Crescent Point Group, with existing investors, Maverick Capital, ONSET Ventures, GBS Venture Partners, WRF Capital, Arboretum Ventures and Affinity Capital, making additional investments. Sami Sindi, Crescent Point managing partner, will join the Uptake Medical board of directors. Moelis & Company acted as...
REDWOOD CITY, Calif., Jan. 6, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Pearl Therapeutics Inc. today announced the completion of two Phase 2b clinical studies of PT003, the Company's investigational inhaled combination bronchodilator product for the treatment of patients with moderate-to-severe COPD. The first of these two trials (NCT01349803) was a 237-subject cardiovascular safety study designed to measure the change in mean heart rate following twice-daily (BID) chronic administration of the...
The Mesothelioma Victims Center is urging families struggling with a loss of a loved one due to a rare form of cancer called mesothelioma to not wait too long to try to get some help. In 2012 approximately 2000 to 3000 US citizens will be diagnosed with mesothelioma. Of this group about one third will be US Navy Veterans. The group says, "Tragically, every week we get calls from a family member, who just lost a dad, a mom, or a husband to mesothelioma. The saddest thing is we have a...
SAN DIEGO, Jan. 4, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Elevation Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced today the closing of a $30 million Series B financing, led by new investor Novo Ventures, to fund development of Elevation's new aerosol therapy for patients living with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). All previous investors participated in the round, including Canaan Partners, TPG Biotech, Care Capital and Mesa Verde Venture Partners. In conjunction with this financing, Elevation has...
National Jewish Health researchers and their colleagues in the COPDGene research consortium report that a computerized form of radiology, known as quantitative CT, can offer valuable prognostic information for patients and doctors beyond the standard breathing tests most commonly used to evaluate chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). “Our findings indicate that quantitative CT scans can help identify patients at greater risk for damaging exacerbations of their disease,” said...
