12 Aug Chronic Lung Disease in Medical Literature for More Than 200 Years Finally Has Its First Drug

By Frank Vinluan, Med City News

Insmed’s Brinsupri is the first drug specifically approved for treating non-cystic fibrosis bronchiectasis, a progressive and potentially fatal lung disorder. The drug, licensed from AstraZeneca, inhibits activation of neutrophils, white blood cells that play a role in inflammatory and immune responses.

The lung disease bronchiectasis plays out as a vicious cycle. Infection leads to inflammation followed by the impaired ability to clear the excess mucus coughed up from the lungs. These problems lead to structural lung damage, and the cycle repeats. René Laennec, a French physician credited as the inventor of the stethoscope, first documented the chronic disorder in 1819. But its presence in medical literature for more than 200 years has been unaccompanied by a drug to treat it. Read more…