News

The Pulmonary Hypertension Association (PHA) is celebrating its 25th birthday in 2016 by highlighting major Pulmonary Hypertension treatment advances made over the past two decades, in order to encourage those with PH to remain hopeful for the development of future therapeutic advancements that will improve quality of life and lifespan. To mark the occasion, the association…

Switzerland-based Actelion, developer of two approved pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) drugs Opsumit (macitentan) and, more recently, Uptravi (selexipag), announced that it will present updates on company growth and future plans at investor conferences in the near future. Actelion is in the process of transforming is PAH portfolio and developing its R&D pipeline of…

A new set of heart and lungs have brought renewed hope to Oswaldo Jimenez and, through the innovative approach taken by his transplant team at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford in California, a fresh chance at life. The Salem, Oregon, teenager, diagnosed with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) at age…

A new study is investigating whether tocilizumab, an immunosuppressive drug mainly used as a therapy for rheumatoid arthritis and systemic juvenile idiopathic arthritis, might also be a treatment for pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). Treatment options now available for the condition only alleviate disease symptoms. Tocilizumab may become the first disease modifying PAH drug. The…

Right ventricular dysfunction is intimately linked to pulmonary hypertension (PH). Since the dynamics of the two ventricles of the heart are connected through the shared tissue of the septum – the wall between the two ventricles – the team behind a new British study hypothesized that the left ventricle would also be affected in PH,…

The legendary singer Natalie Cole, the daughter of Nat King Cole, died on New Year’s Eve at the Cedars-Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles of idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension (IPAH), which led to heart failure, according to a statement released by her family. She was 65. Cole had battled health issues for years,…

Data from a Phase 3 clinical trial showed that patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) might benefit from selexipag treatment, as the drug was seen to lower the risk of death or PAH-related complications. The study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, is titled “Selexipag for the…

SteadyMed, Ltd., a company that develops products to treat orphan and high-value conditions with unmet parenteral delivery needs, recently announced that its lead product candidate, Trevyent® has been granted Orphan Drug Designation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH).

Reata Pharmaceuticals, Inc., recently announced the enrollment of the first patient with pulmonary hypertension associated with interstitial lung disease (PH-ILD) in its LARIAT study, a Phase 2 clinical trial assessing the safety, efficacy, and tolerability of bardoxolone methyl in patients with pulmonary hypertension (PH). PH is characterized by unusually high…

According to a recent announcement, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved Actelion Pharmaceuticals’ Uptravi (selexipag) tablets for the treatment of adult patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) to delay disease progression and reduce the risk of hospitalization, under orphan drug designation. PAH is a life-threatening disease…

Team PHenomenal Hope will take part in a seven-day cycling competition to raise awareness of pulmonary hypertension (PH) and money to advance research into the disease. The nonprofit, presented by the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC), Bayer Healthcare, and Actelion, is competing in the The Pioneer race through New Zealand’s Southern Alps.

Sildenafil (Revatio) — a phosphodiesterase type-5 inhibitor developed by Pfizer – is approved for the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) in adults. Two large international clinical trials, the STARTS I and II trials, subsequently investigated the safety of sildenafil use in children. Based on their findings, however, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the…