Magdalena Kegel,  —

Certain immune cells contribute to the development of fibrosis, researchers at Chicago’s Northwestern Medicine discovered in a study that might overturn the view of lung fibrosis as a disease unaffected by immune processes. The report titled, “Monocyte-derived alveolar macrophages drive lung fibrosis and persist in the lung over the life…

A cell therapy based on injected genetically modified human skin cells and a pill that activates a protein has the capacity for breaking down fibrosis in localized scleroderma — at least in mice. Fibrocell and Intrexon will present preclinical data on their investigational cell therapy FCX-013 for the…

Factors in the innate immune system, as well as those in the extracellular matrix surrounding cells, are likely involved in the development of lung fibrosis in scleroderma patients, researchers suggest after linking gene mutations to the condition. Since risk factors for scleroderma typically belong to other parts of the immune system, these…

A therapy used to prevent organ rejection in patients who have a kidney, liver, or heart transplant can help people with scleroderma-associated lung disease, a study suggests. That treatment, Cellcept (mycophenolate mofetil), slowed lung function decline, according to a comparison of the results of two clinical trials. Cellcept’s effects were…

Scleroderma patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) who respond well to treatment have more lung artery side branches than patients who respond poorly, according to a study. A milestone in the study was that researchers used an imaging method that had never been used in a scleroderma study. It allows…

Blood vessel-dilating treatments increase blood flow equally well in digital ulcers on fingertips and in extensor surface ulcers, which occur on the opposite side of joints. This shows that a lack of blood supply — and therefore oxygen to the tissue — cause both types of ulcers in scleroderma patients.

Patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) linked to scleroderma have worse outcomes than those with idiopathic PAH, with survival times of less than half of iPAH patients. The difference is likely tied to numerous factors, but older age and a poor transfer of gas (abnormal oxygen-carbon monoxide transfer) in the…

A large study following patients in the early stages of diffuse cutaneous scleroderma showed that immunosuppressants offered only a negligible benefit for those who took them, compared to those who didn’t. Since immunosuppressants produced numerically larger reductions in skin symptoms, the findings may support patients using such drugs from the onset of their…

Researchers have found links between several heavy metals and scleroderma, a discovery that prompted them to encourage doctors to check whether their patients had occupational exposure to heavy metals. Interestingly, some metals were associated more with male scleroderma patients and some with females. The study, “Systemic sclerosis and…

Many scleroderma patients show an “excellent” response to a kidney transplant and such surgery should be considered for those with end-stage kidney disease, a study exploring the procedure found. But its researchers also noted that scleroderma patients with lung involvement were the most likely to die after a kidney transplant, indicating that lung health need be included…