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Therapeutic options for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) are limited and generally are unsatisfactory. Three new reports address IPF treatment.
Pirfenidone is thought to exert antifibrotic effects by inhibiting growth factors. After two previous trials suggested benefit (Lancet 2011; 377:1760), the drug was approved for use in many countries — but not in the U.S. Now, in a third industry-supported, randomized trial, 555 patients with IPF received pirfenidone or placebo for 1 year. The proportion of patients whose forced vital capacity (FVC) decreased by 10 percentage points or who died was significantly lower with pirfenidone than with placebo (17% vs. 32%). In a prespecified pooling of data from all three pirfenidone trials, all-cause mo…