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.
Site Search
For the first time, the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation invited non-CF experts to its annual research conference to meet with CF researchers. The conference -- New Technologies Advancing Toward a One-Time Cure -- in Savannah last month focused on the challenges being faced in gene editing, gene delivery and stem-cell biology and laid the foundation for new collaborations.
The top priority in clinical research is protecting the safety of people who participate. Learn more about the numerous layers of review that help keep participants safe.
As Congress weighs budget appropriations, we look at long-term funding for the National Institutes of Health. We decided to sit down with the Foundation's senior vice president of research affairs to learn more about why the work being done at NIH is so important in the search for a cure for CF and other serious, rare diseases.
In January, I underwent successful phage therapy -- an experimental treatment in which viruses are used to kill difficult-to-treat bacteria. To get a better sense of the future of this potential treatment option for other people with CF, I chatted with the head of the Infection Research Initiative at the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.
Last week I travelled to D.C. to serve on a panel discussing the recent developments in precision medicine. I've got to say, it was pretty neat.
Everyone with cystic fibrosis faces the fear that their next infection could be the one that doesn't respond to treatments. Chronic infections eventually led to my sister's death. After seeing what she went through, it became clear to me that we have an immediate need for better anti-infectives.
Earlier this month, we learned that the new CF drug Orkambi was approved by the FDA. This was such an exciting, memorable and emotional day for everyone in the CF community. We heard from many who were thrilled about the potential for this drug to help people with CF and also heard from those who would not benefit from this breakthrough. Following are some reactions from those this impacts the most: people with CF and their loved ones.
Ever wondered what it takes for a potential cystic fibrosis drug to become approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration? Here's an explanation of the four phases of clinical research.
I felt unrelenting hope watching the first plenary of this year’s North American Cystic Fibrosis Conference. As I learned about progress that has been made in sickle cell disease, and how those learnings may help us develop a genetic therapy for CF, it showed me that the CF community is supporting people like me who can’t take modulators.