Pulmonary fibrosis is a lung disease where the lung tissue becomes thick, stiff, and scarred. This scarring of the lung tissue makes it more difficult for lungs to take in air, meaning that someone with pulmonary fibrosis will have trouble breathing. Pulmonary fibrosis will continue to progress in a patient, eventually resulting in them no longer being able to breathe on their own.
Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis
There are several different types of pulmonary fibrosis, which are all caused by different things. Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis is pulmonary fibrosis that has an unknown cause with an extremely high mortality rate. For a long time, there were no drug treatment options for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. Now, however, idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis can be treated by () and Esbriet (pirfenidone).
It is not fully clear how and Esbriet work to treat idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. Researchers believe that these two drugs have a way of inhibiting important pathways in the lungs and that this is what prevents scarring from occurring.
Neither nor Esbriet is a cure for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. These drugs are only treatments. Because of this, idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis may still progress even if a patient is using or Esbriet. The good news is that both drugs have been shown to significantly slow the progression of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.
Studies of the drugs and Esbriet have shown that they both can reduce a decline in the forced vital capacity (FVC) over time. Further studies have shown that the drugs can also both be efficacious, regardless of the patient’s age and the severity of the patient’s baseline lung function.
and Esbriet have both been shown to have manageable side effect profiles.
Speak to your doctor or to a healthcare professional to find out if either or Esbriet is right for you.
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