Marisa Wexler, MS, senior science writer —

Some types of disease-specific antibodies are more common in Black patients with scleroderma than white patients, a study shows. Differences in antibody profiles may help explain why clinical outcomes tend to differ for patients of different races, but the data suggest these variations can’t fully account for all the…

Treatment with Letairis (ambrisentan) — approved to treat pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), a common complication of systemic sclerosis (SSc) — may help prevent the development of PAH, or high blood pressure in the arteries…

Levels of two blood proteins, calcitonin and SOST, may be markers of lung disease in people with scleroderma, a new study shows. “This study indicates that serum calcitonin and SOST levels are promising biomarkers for [scleroderma]-related PAH [pulmonary arterial hypertension] and ILD [interstitial lung disease], respectively,” the researchers wrote, though…

Living with scleroderma requires adapting to changes in a woman’s sense of self, but practicing gratitude and accepting change can help patients reclaim themselves, a study aiming for a “grounded theory” of identify management reports. Its scientists said these findings may lay the groundwork for future studies aiming to…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted fast track designation to the cell therapy CABA-201 for organ dysfunction in people with scleroderma. The agency also granted CABA-201 fast track status to reduce disease activity in people with dermatomyositis, another rare disorder that’s marked by muscle weakness and…

An MRI-based measure called Digital Artery Volume Index, or DAVIX, may help predict the risk that people with scleroderma will develop ulcers on their fingers, a study suggests. “The potential of DAVIX to detect and predict digital ulcer disease could render it a useful stratification tool in clinical trials,”…

Treatment with FT011 led to clinically meaningful improvements in physical disability and lung function for some scleroderma patients given the experimental therapy in a Phase 2 clinical trial. Christopher Denton, MD, a professor at University College London, shared the results at the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) Convergence 2023…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted orphan drug designation to FT011, an experimental oral medication that Certa Therapeutics is developing as a treatment for systemic sclerosis. The FDA gives this designation to investigational treatments for rare diseases, those affecting fewer than 200,000 people…

Arsenic trioxide (ATO) lowered lung inflammation and disease-related alterations to blood vessels in the lungs in a mouse model of scleroderma (SSc), a study reports. “Our study provides compelling evidence of the positive effects of ATO treatment on lung function in a mouse model of SSc,” researchers wrote in…

Treatment with iguratimod, an anti-inflammatory medication, reduced fibrosis (scarring) in cell and mouse models of scleroderma, a study from China reports. An approved therapy in that country, “iguratimod is a promising disease-modifying drug with an anti-fibrotic effect,” the researchers wrote. “It is reasonable to further investigate the efficacy of…