News

TLY012, a lab-made equivalent of a natural protein called TRAIL, can reverse skin fibrosis in mice with scleroderma by blocking important cells involved in the underlying mechanism of skin scarring, a research study found. Targeting TRAIL pathway and this novel engineered molecule may represent a promising anti-fibrotic strategy to arrest scleroderma in…

Increased levels of specific antibodies that can attack the host’s own tissues may be an early manifestation of systemic sclerosis (SSc) that can be detected years before clinical diagnosis. These autoantibodies may also help predict the onset of scleroderma renal crisis (SRC), a potentially life-threatening complication of the disease, a study suggests.

Progressive skin fibrosis within one year increases the risk of lung function decline and mortality in patients with diffuse cutaneous systemic scleroderma (dcSSc), a large-scale observational study found. The finding suggests that skin fibrosis scoring can work as a potential surrogate marker for dcSSc severity in clinical trials and routine…

Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is not associated with clinically significant exocrine pancreatic dysfunction, a condition that can promote malnutrition in patients, researchers report. Of note, exocrine refers to the part of the pancreas that functions as a gland, producing and secreting digestive enzymes. The study, “Exocrine Pancreatic Function is…

Scleroderma patients with ANCA autoantibodies have a higher prevalence of interstitial lung disease (ILD) and pulmonary embolism, as well as a greater mortality risk than those without these antibodies, according to new research. The study, “Significance of anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibodies in systemic sclerosis,” was…

Emerald Health Pharmaceuticals’ cannabis-derived therapy, EHP-101, eased the symptoms of systemic sclerosis by preventing blood vessel damage, and reducing fibrosis and inflammation in a study using mice. The study, “Cannabinoid derivatives acting as dual PPARγ/CB2 agonists as therapeutic agents for Systemic Sclerosis,” was published in…

Boehringer Ingelheim has submitted its proprietary therapy nintedanib to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the European Medicines Agency for regulatory approval to treat systemic sclerosis (SSc)-associated interstitial lung disease (SSc-ILD). Approval is needed by the relevant regulatory agencies before a new product or treatment can reach…

A high prevalence of pulmonary veno-occlusive disease (PVOD) in systemic sclerosis (SSc) patients with pulmonary hypertension associated with interstitial lung disease may explain the poor prognosis observed in this patient group, according to a new study. The study, “Pulmonary veno-occlusive disease is highly prevalent in scleroderma patients undergoing…

Madeline Collin, a 24-year-old activist with Gaucher disease, worries that patients like her will suffer deeply if Britain leaves the European Union (EU), as scheduled, at the end of this month. Collin is an expert on the subject. For her University of Bathdissertation, she analyzed Brexit’s long-term impact…

With each new advance in medicine comes ethical dilemmas, from fertility treatments and newborn screening, to vaccinations, gene therapies and euthanasia. But rare diseases and the expensive therapies needed to treat them — particularly in an age of scarce economic resources — almost always entail “tragic choices,” warned Avraham Steinberg,…