“The greatest failure in life is to stop trying.” — Napoleon Hill The past few days have been encouraging for me, even though living with sarcoidosis can make some days more challenging than others. I didn’t win the lottery, nor did I pay off my mortgage (wishful prayers), but…

Adalimumab — a medication that blocks the pro-inflammatory TNF-alpha protein — safely and effectively eased symptoms of cardiac sarcoidosis in seven adults, allowing them to reduce or discontinue their use of corticosteroids, a study reports. The therapy also promoted a rise in the number of lymphocytes, a type of…

In 1989, I rented my first apartment. It was in a wonderful brownstone in the same area where I grew up. My family used to shop at the Italian Market in South Philly, an area that stretches about six or seven blocks where outdoor vendors sell merchandise, such as fruits,…

Tampa General Hospital (TGH) and the collaborative pulmonology program of USF Health  have joined the Foundation for Sarcoidosis Research (FSR) Global Sarcoidosis Clinic Alliance to advance care and research in sarcoidosis. The Alliance is a hub of clinics and hospitals around the world, that through education,…

How are you? It’s such a common question, I’ve even learned to say it in multiple languages: Cómo estás? (Spanish), Eich at/ata? (Hebrew), Come stai? (Italian), Comment allez-vous? (French), Nǐ hǎo ma? (Chinese), Ti kanis? (Greek) — and let us not forget, “How YOU doin’?” (Joey Tribbiani, “Friends”). Ironically, when people…

I’m a marathoner! On Sunday, Nov. 6, I ran the TCS New York City Marathon, my first 26.2-mile race. And I did it with sarcoidosis-affected lungs. In the end, each mile was like a race of its own. Miles 1–2: I’m on the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, leaving Staten…

The Foundation for Sarcoidosis Research (FSR) has awarded pulmonologist Nabeel Hamzeh, MD, at the University of Iowa, a $50,000 grant to develop blood biomarkers of cardiac sarcoidosis. His project, titled “Cardiac-Specific Cell Free DNA Biomarkers for Cardiac Sarcoidosis,” will focus on the biomarker potential of heart cell-specific circulating cell-free…

Among sarcoidosis patients referred for lung transplant, the risk of death while on the waitlist is higher for women and those who have severe pulmonary hypertension (PH), or high blood pressure in the lungs, a new study reports. “Clinicians should be mindful of the increased mortality in [advanced…

For the past few days, I’ve been feeling distant in my relationships, mostly because of an unusual series of deaths close to me. This is the 19th year since I lost my mother. It’s also been 18 years since I was diagnosed with sarcoidosis. For some reason, I’ve been…

Infliximab — marketed as Remicade and biosimilars — had steroid-sparing effects superior to methotrexate in the treatment of cardiac sarcoidosis, a small study found. The success rate of a tapering course of corticosteroids was significantly better when infliximab was added to the regimen than when the steroid was used…