People like me are living longer — median survival for someone with cystic fibrosis is now 56 thanks to research and care. But as I grow older, my health is getting more complicated and I'll need my care to keep up.
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A new law that allows patients with rare diseases to participate in clinical trials without losing eligibility for public health care benefits went into effect yesterday. The bill, known as the “Improving Access to Clinical Trials Act” (IACT), was championed by the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation and signed into law in October 2010.
Although adults with cystic fibrosis are at a significantly higher risk of developing colorectal cancer than the general population, colonoscopy screening is an effective way to prevent and treat colorectal cancer by helping to detect and remove polyps. People with CF should be screened starting at age 40 (or 30 for those who have had a transplant). Find out how early screening can help reduce the risk.
While I’ve had the incredible opportunity to participate in clinical trials for cystic fibrosis, my nonsense mutations mean I can’t benefit from modulators. I was inspired by the North American Cystic Fibrosis Conference’s second plenary session, which discussed how we can evolve clinical trials to develop treatments for all people with CF.
The third plenary at this year’s North American Cystic Fibrosis Conference focused on the changing needs of the CF population that are compelling an evolution in CF care. As a person with CF, this evolution in care directly affects me as I face the challenges of living longer with this disease.
Throughout my life with cystic fibrosis, I never thought about the prospect that I would outlive my loved ones. Now that I have attended some of their funerals, the thought of my own mortality has caught up with me.
Now that I’m in my 40s and post-lung transplant, I’m beginning to embrace the realities of aging with cystic fibrosis. Despite the gray hairs and deepening wrinkles, I know that I am lucky to be looking forward to mammograms and menopause.
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There have never been as many new CF drugs in development as there are today. In the second plenary at NACFC, Dr. George Retsch-Bogart outlined the progress we've made, the road ahead and the changes needed to make it all possible. Read on for my key takeaways.