The Lung Allocation Score (LAS) system, which is used to prioritize patients awaiting lung transplant, may not accurately reflect disease severity risks for people with pulmonary sarcoidosis, a new study reports. Results showed that several factors accounted for in the LAS remain significant predictors of mortality for patients on…

Researchers have uncovered a network of abnormally activated immune cells and fibroblasts — the primary active cell of connective tissue — within granulomas, the clumps of cells that cause sarcoidosis. The key players in granuloma formation include metabolically reprogrammed immune macrophages, immune T-helper (Th) cells producing pro-inflammatory molecules, and…

When I was diagnosed with “some kind of arthritis, probably autoimmune” in 2011, I wanted to learn all I could. After years of being dismissed and disregarded by doctors because I “looked fine,” even this nondiagnosis was a big step for me. It was validation, after all those years,…

A new year means new resolutions. I start every year with good intentions to do better than the year before, but I made a few resolutions last year that I haven’t fulfilled. That doesn’t mean I didn’t try; life got in the way and made some more difficult to complete…

The year 2022 was one I won’t soon forget. Yes, it’s easy to say that right after it’s ended. But sometimes, you just know that a time was special, don’t you? Like much of the world, I knew that 2020 would be memorable, what with the COVID-19 pandemic starting and…

“Hang on a sec, hon,” I called to my husband in the car, at the airport, and again on the plane. “I want to get a good shot. I’m sure something from this trip will work its way into my next column.” Boy, was I right — but not in…

People with sarcoidosis who live in neighborhoods lacking economic and social resources have lower lung function and faster lung function decline, a study in the U.S. and Canada revealed. Non-white patients were overrepresented in the group with greater disadvantage, suggesting how race and differences in socioeconomic status can lead…

“Who is of so little faith that in a moment of great disaster or heartbreak has not called to his God? Who has not cried out when confronted with danger, death, or mystery beyond his normal experience or comprehension? From where has this deep instinct come which escapes from the…

The first participant has been dosed in a Phase 2 clinical trial testing the experimental therapy namilumab in people with pulmonary sarcoidosis, the therapy’s developer Kinevant Sciences announced. “We are excited to advance namilumab as a promising new treatment for pulmonary sarcoidosis since it has a mechanism of…

The other day I picked up my new glasses — a pair of bifocals, because my doctor said that progressive lenses would worsen my dizziness and vertigo. The same day, I was discharged from physical therapy because my insurance company didn’t see enough progress. Since every other treatment has…