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1 week ago | 
cysticfibrosisnewstoday.com | Jennifer Bleecher |Andrea Lobo |Lara Govendo
I recently agreed to facilitate one of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation’s CF Circles, which are virtual small-group discussions about a specific topic. The focus of this particular gathering was “Living with cystic fibrosis (CF) over 40.”After my double-lung transplant in 2020, I decided to take a break from many things CF on social media.
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3 weeks ago | 
cysticfibrosisnewstoday.com | Jennifer Bleecher |Marisa Wexler |Lara Govendo
In a private Facebook group for adults living with cystic fibrosis (CF), a post jumped out at me asking if anyone had gone through a divorce after their double-lung transplant. The post instantly caught my attention because that’s my current situation. What disturbed me was the number of responses saying, “Yes, me.”After being with someone for 17 years and seeing many ups and downs of adulthood and CF life together, four years after the transplant, my marriage is over.
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1 month ago | 
cysticfibrosisnewstoday.com | Brad Dell |Lara Govendo |William Ryan |Jennifer Bleecher
As a child I was a kicker, the type no nurse wants to be near when wielding needles and throat swabs. Eventually I’d relax my shrieking when Mom or Dad held my hand and called me brave. The nurses were then more warmly received. To be safe, they came bearing diplomatic lollipops, stickers, and another “You’re so brave.”There comes a time when the chronically ill child learns that such rewards are designed to shut them up and soften the next meltdown.
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1 month ago | 
cysticfibrosisnewstoday.com | Margarida Maia |Jennifer Bleecher |Lindsey Shapiro |Andrea Lobo
Despite often using a contraceptive at some point, unintended pregnancy remains fairly common among women with cystic fibrosis (CF) in the U.S, a survey study found. One in five women reported having an unplanned pregnancy, with the youngest being age 15, adding “to the growing evidence that suggests the importance of addressing reproductive health among females with CF starting before age 18 years and optimizing contraceptive counseling,” the researchers wrote.
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1 month ago | 
cysticfibrosisnewstoday.com | Jennifer Bleecher |Margarida Maia |Marta C. Figueiredo |Shelby Dell
In the first few days after my double-lung transplant in 2020, I was looking at a hand-held mirror and saw a central venous catheter protruding from the left side of my neck. A large, bulky bandage covered the right side. Little did I know then that the bandage represented something that would change my health and long-term treatment. My right arm and hand were also grossly swollen.
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1 month ago | 
cysticfibrosisnewstoday.com | Jennifer Bleecher |Steve Bryson |Patricia Inacio |William Ryan
The power of water is underrated. If you Google it, you’ll see you can delve into multiple aspects of water’s properties, including how it supports thermal energy, hydropower, transportation, and anti-erosion efforts. It’s a (because of its molecular structure), it’s often symbolic (as in the Bible), and it offers spiritual gifts as well. On average, the . Staying hydrated is important for health, and for those of us living with cystic fibrosis (CF), it’s particularly vital.
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2 months ago | 
cysticfibrosisnewstoday.com | Jennifer Bleecher |Andrea Lobo |Katherine Poinsatte |William Ryan
Is it just me, or did January feel like an entire year all on its own? From drastic political shifts to devastating wildfires, extra-cold temperatures to egg shortages, a surge in influenza activity to outbreaks of tuberculosis, 2025 has been exhausting so far. On top of everything, I feel a heaviness online in the cystic fibrosis (CF) community. Again, is it just me? I see many going through extremely difficult health battles and feel they need to be addressed.
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Jan 13, 2025 | 
cysticfibrosisnewstoday.com | Jennifer Bleecher |Steve Bryson |Jennifer Chamberlain |Brad Dell
This month, my beautiful daughter, Claudia, will celebrate her 29th birthday. I was 24 and living with cystic fibrosis (CF) when I became her mother. It’s now been four years since my double-lung transplant, and I’m currently fighting COVID-19 for the fourth time in four years. As the new year begins, I find myself ruminating about the miracle of Claudia turning 29. When I was born in 1971, my mother was told my life expectancy was about 12 years.
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Nov 25, 2024 | 
cysticfibrosisnewstoday.com | Steve Bryson |Jennifer Bleecher |Lindsey Shapiro |Margarida Maia
People with cystic fibrosis-related diabetes (CFRD) have lower pancreatic production of the GLP-1 receptor (GLP-1R), a protein that binds the hormone GLP-1 and triggers insulin secretion, a study reported. “Signaling of GLP-1 (and its ability to enhance insulin secretion) may be impaired as a result of reduced GLP-1R availability,” the researchers wrote. The findings illuminate potential targets for therapeutic intervention to improve pancreas function in CFRD, they noted.
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Nov 22, 2024 | 
cysticfibrosisnewstoday.com | Kristin Entler |Marisa Wexler |Jennifer Bleecher |William Ryan
There’s a video buried deep in my phone’s memory from seven years ago. It shows me driving on the Blue Ridge Parkway in the summer, the leaves full and making a canopy of shade over the road. The moonroof on my Honda, the car I still drive today, is open, and my friend is raising the phone’s camera over the roof. A 2017 view of the overlook on the Blue Ridge Parkway.
