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Dec 10, 2024 | 
pulmonaryfibrosisnews.com | Samuel Kirton |Christie Patient |Ann Reynoso
Good grief! When I hear this two-word phrase, I often associate it with the cartoon character Charlie Brown. Otherwise, the words “good” and “grief” seldom seem to belong together. What do you do with grief amid the holiday season? If you’ve been reading my columns for some time, you may recall that my mother passed away on Thanksgiving Day 2020.
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Nov 26, 2024 | 
pulmonaryfibrosisnews.com | Samuel Kirton |Christie Patient
Families will gather this week to celebrate Thanksgiving here in the U.S. But how do you safely navigate a large family gathering when colds, the flu, and COVID-19 are all circulating? When I was diagnosed with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) in 2017, a lot changed in my world. Family gatherings, which I’ve always enjoyed, became more challenging as my IPF progressed. When I started using supplemental oxygen, my wife, Susan, and I switched from flying to ground travel.
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Sep 17, 2024 | 
pulmonaryfibrosisnews.com | Ann Reynoso |Lindsey Shapiro |Christie Patient |Charlene Marshall
Living with pulmonary fibrosis is already a daunting challenge, but when coupled with a sleep disorder like sleep apnea, the burden becomes even heavier. Sleep apnea, a condition in which breathing repeatedly stops and starts during sleep, can significantly impact both sleep quality and overall health. For someone with pulmonary fibrosis (PF), where breathing is already compromised, sleep apnea exacerbates the struggle for oxygen, making restful sleep seem impossible.
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Jul 2, 2024 | 
pulmonaryfibrosisnews.com | Ann Reynoso |Christie Patient |Samuel Kirton |Margarida Maia
“Who is this woman?” I wonder as I look at a recent photo of myself. I hardly recognize the person looking back at me. Her face has changed. I haven’t looked at myself in the mirror lately. I’ve been too self-conscious. What happened to that vibrant and bright young lady I once was? At 57, my face seems old and worn. I wish these age spots weren’t visible.
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Jun 11, 2024 | 
pulmonaryfibrosisnews.com | Samuel Kirton |Andrea Lobo |Christie Patient
I recently read a social media post from a patient who uses supplemental oxygen. They said they were unable to alert a family member in a neighboring room when the power went out, causing their oxygen to stop. Someone commented that if the patient had been on only 3 liters per minute of oxygen, as they noted in the post, why didn’t they just get up and walk to the other room? When I was diagnosed with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), I started on a journey unique to me.
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Jun 4, 2024 | 
pulmonaryfibrosisnews.com | Samuel Kirton |Steve Bryson |Margarida Maia |Christie Patient
I was diagnosed with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) in January 2017, at age 59, and received a bilateral lung transplant in July 2021. During a visit last week, my adult daughter Heather asked me a perplexing question: “Is the IPF gone now that you have new lungs?”That’s a tough one to answer. With any type of pulmonary fibrosis (PF), the scarring is progressive and irreversible. That said, each patient is unique, so the answer to this question will differ for all of us.
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May 9, 2024 | 
pulmonaryfibrosisnews.com | Charlene Marshall |Christie Patient |Samuel Kirton |Andrea Lobo
The life I once knew and loved drastically changed on April 7, 2016. On that day, I was diagnosed with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), a life-threatening and progressive lung disease for which there is no cure. Earlier this month, I marked my eighth anniversary of having IPF — a day I didn’t know if I’d ever see. April 7 fell on a Sunday this year, so I didn’t have work to distract me.
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May 7, 2024 | 
pulmonaryfibrosisnews.com | Samuel Kirton |Christie Patient |Steve Bryson
“You’ll Never Walk Alone” was written by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II for the 1945 musical “Carousel.” Many others have performed the song over the years, and it’s even become the anthem for Liverpool Football Club in England. Most recently, I’ve enjoyed the version by Marcus Mumford.
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Apr 19, 2024 | 
pulmonaryfibrosisnews.com | Andrea Lobo |Marisa Wexler |Christie Patient |Steve Bryson
Enrollment has been completed for a Phase 2b trial that’s testing LYT-100 (deupirfenidone), PureTech Health’s experimental therapy for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). The trial, called ELEVATE IPF (NCT05321420), is assessing the safety, efficacy, and dosing regimen of LYT-100 in 240 adults with IPF, compared with a placebo. Top-line results from the study are expected in the fall.
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Apr 9, 2024 | 
pulmonaryfibrosisnews.com | Samuel Kirton |Christie Patient
“It is only because of your generous gift of life that I am here. This is the hardest letter I have ever composed. Trying to capture the full range of emotions in a single letter to say thank you is more difficult than I imagined.”These are the words that began my first letter to my donor family in December 2021. Diagnosed with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis in January 2017, I was fortunate to receive a bilateral lung transplant in July 2021.
