I stopped at a tire center this month to have one of the tires on my car checked. The small bubble on the sidewall didn’t seem like a big deal to me, but I was told it was a ticking time bomb that could blow at any moment. That was…

aTyr Pharma announced a collaboration and license agreement with Kyorin Pharmaceutical to develop and commercialize ATYR1923, its potential disease-modifying treatment for those with interstitial lung diseases (ILDs), including pulmonary sarcoidosis, in Japan. ATYR1923 is a fusion protein that contains a portion of a human antibody linked to…

Years ago, I took a young family member to acting classes for eight weeks. The class focused on improvisation, also known as improv. During that two-month period, I learned so much about the fine art of acting. Recently, I recognized how this has helped me deal with sarcoidosis. Improv is…

The transplantation program at Stanford Medicine has hit a milestone with its 1,000th procedure — performed on a 54-year-old woman with sarcoidosis. The surgery, carried under the Heart-Lung & Lung Transplantation Program at Stanford Health Care, is now part of the 750 lung transplants and 250 heart-lung…

I previously wrote about the challenge of living with sarcoidosis during the four seasons. Each season has its difficulties. Yet I can’t imagine living without the change in weather. I enjoy each season for what it has to offer. We’re well into winter in the Northeast. The cold, wind,…

While sarcoidosis affecting the testicles is rare, it can be a cause of infertility in men, according to a new case report. The report, “Sarcoidosis is a rare cause of infertility: A case report,” was published in Urology Case Reports. Sarcoidosis is characterized by the…

ATYR1923, aTyr Pharma’s lead investigational therapy for pulmonary sarcoidosis, is safe and well-tolerated, according to interim data from a Phase 1b/2a clinical trial. ATYR1923 is a first-in-class disease-modifying therapy  in development for the treatment of different types of interstitial lung diseases…

The holiday season is here once again. Before sarcoidosis, I embraced the holidays as a festive time. Things have changed since then. However, I have found a “recipe” for approaching the holiday season: a way to stay as stress-free and healthy as possible, despite my chronic illness. I…

The lungs of patients with sarcoidosis are burdened with a more active subset of immune T-cells, called mucosal-associated invariant T (MAIT) cells, a study reports. The activity of these MAIT cells correlates with worse disease, supporting their potential as therapeutic targets, the researchers said. The study, “…

Intermediate monocytes, a type of immune cell, may contribute to the development and progression of sarcoidosis through the production of TARC — a molecule that attracts other specific immune cells linked to inflammation, according to a small study. These findings point to intermediate monocytes and TARC as potential treatment targets…