June 1st 2022
In high-deductible plans, patients had the highest out-of-pockets costs and abandoned and discontinued therapy at greater rates than other benefit designs.
April 10th 2017
Woodcock to keynote PFF Summit
November 4th 2015Janet Woodcock, MD, director of the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research at the FDA, will speak about the future of drug development in pulmonary fibrosis during the PFF Summit 2015: From Bench to Bedside conference, November 12-14 in Washington D.C.
FDA approves new COPD treatments
November 2nd 2015FDA approved the dual combination bronchodilator Utibron Neohaler (indacaterol/glycopyrrolate) and the stand-alone monotherapy Seebri Neohaler (glycopyrrolate) – which is one component of Utibron Neohaler -- for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), including chronic bronchitis and/or emphysema.
Once-daily maintenance combo drug approved for COPD
June 1st 2015FDA approved once-daily tiotropium bromide and olodaterol (Stiolto Respimat, Boehringer Ingelheim) Inhalation Spray as a long-term, once-daily maintenance treatment of airflow obstruction in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), including chronic bronchitis and/or emphysema.
COPD fixed-dose combo enhances lung function
June 1st 2015Because lung function can be substantially reduced by the time most chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients first see a physician, maintenance treatment should be considered at the time of diagnosis, according to new data analyses presented at the American Thoracic Society (ATS) 2015 International Conference.
Investigational dual bronchodilator improves lung function over single bronchodilators in COPD
May 29th 2015In patients with moderate-to-severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), investigational indacaterol/glycopyrronium (QVA149) bromide significantly improved lung function compared to the single bronchodilators, according to data presented at the American Thoracic Society (ATS) International Conference in Denver, May 15 to 20.
Researchers discover IPF biomarkers
April 10th 2015In a large, mutli-center study, researchers discovered potential biomarkers for accurately assessing idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) disease progression. The study, published in the March 11 issue of The Lancet Respiratory Medicine, was led by R. Gisli Jenkins, PhD, with the Division of Respiratory Medicine at the University of Nottingham in the United Kingdom. The PROFILE study was funded by GlaxoSmithKline R & D and the Medical Research Council.
Study details problems with COPD drug
April 1st 2015Roflumilast, a drug recently approved in the U.S. to treat severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), increases the production of a protein that causes inflammation – which possibly results in patients developing a tolerance to the drug after repeated use and renders it ineffective, according to a new study.
FDA panels approve Breo Ellipta for asthma in adults, not kids
March 20th 2015Food and Drug Administration (FDA) committees this week voted to approve GlaxoSmithKline and Theravance’s Breo ELlipta (fluticasone furoate/vilanterol) as an asthma treatment for adults 19 years and older, but not for 12 to 17-year-olds.
IPF survival rates better in double-lung transplantation
March 13th 2015Double-lung transplantation in patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) was associated with better graft survival and patient survival than single-lung transplantation, according to a JAMA study.
Top non-pharmacological treatments for IPF
February 10th 2015Because there was no approved medication treatment for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) until mid-October, 2014, physicians primarily focused on non-pharmacological treatments to help patients improve. Even with FDA’s approval of nintedanib (Ofev) and pirfenidone (Esbriet), physicians will continue to recommend certain therapies that generally ease symptoms and improve patients’ quality of life.
Cholesterol-lowering agent leads list of most-prescribed drugs
November 5th 2014Rosuvastatin (Crestor, AstraZeneca), a cholesterol-lowering agent, is currently the most-prescribed drug among the 100 most-prescribed and best-selling drugs in the United States. In the past 12 months, new prescriptions and refills for rosuvastatin have been estimated to amount to 23.7 million.
New data examines step-wise withdrawal of inhaled corticosteroids in COPD
October 2nd 2014In patients with severe to very severe COPD and a history of exacerbation, the risk of moderate or severe exacerbations during 1 year of follow-up was non-inferior between those patients who continued on inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) and those who discontinued ICS therapy in a step-wise manner, as long as patients continued to receive maintenance treatment with long-acting bronchodilators (tiotropium and a long-acting beta agonist [LABA]), according to data presented at the European Respiratory Society (ERS) International Congress 2014 and also published in The New England Journal of Medicine.
Pulmonary Fibrosis patient survey highlights quality of life issues
September 24th 2014The Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation (PFF) submitted survey data from more than 1,100 patients and families suffering from pulmonary fibrosis (PF) to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Read more about the survey data to better understand the unique needs of patients and families with IPF.
FDA approves Striverdi Respimat to treat COPD
August 4th 2014FDA has approved olodaterol (Striverdi Respimat, Boehringer Ingelheim) Inhalation Spray 5 µg as a long-term, once-daily maintenance bronchodilator treatment of airflow obstruction in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), including chronic bronchitis and/or emphysema.