A Mayo Clinic study has suggested that the combination of biologic therapy with immune-suppressing drugs first instead of the drugs alone can be more than just beneficial to prompt remission from Crohn’s disease in a better way.

The study was published in the April 15, 2010 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

From Sciencedaily.com:

Researchers found that 57 percent of patients who received combination therapy with infliximab and azathioprine achieved steroid-free remission after 26 weeks. This is compared to 44 percent of patients who achieved remission with infliximab monotherapy and 30 percent with azathioprine alone. Both the infliximab combination therapy and infliximab monotherapy groups were statistically superior to the azathioprine group. These results were durable through week 50 and overall results show comparable safety in the three groups.

Historically, patients with Crohn’s disease have been treated sequentially with steroids, then azathioprine, then monoclonal antibodies such as infliximab. The study definitively demonstrates that infliximab-based strategies are more effective than azathioprine, explains Dr. Sandborn.

“Results of this study will provide doctors and their patients with more information on how to use these drugs most appropriately to most effectively treat Crohn’s disease,” says Dr. Sandborn. “For the first time, we have longer term outcome data on the advantages of combination therapy that will help guide our treatment of patients with Crohn’s disease.”

The study results are worthwhile enough to initiate a change in clinical practice, according to William Sandborn, M.D., gastroenterologist and vice chair of the Division of Gastroenterology & Hepatology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester.

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The therapy involving drug Sargramostim or Leukine could be helpful for managing disease activity and providing significant relief to patients afflicted with Crohn’s disease, which is a debilitating form of inflammatory bowel disease.

Dr. John F. Valentine, an associate professor of gastroenterology, Hepatology and nutrition at UF’s College of Medicine and the Malcom Randall Veterans Affairs Medical Center, was of the view that stimulation of the immune system is a better option of treatment than suppression of the immune system.

From Sciencedaily.com:

“If the drug really works the way we think it works, it’s 180 degrees in the opposite direction of everything else we do to treat Crohn’s disease,” he said. “We still don’t really know what causes Crohn’s disease. The traditional theory has been it’s an overactive or inappropriate immune response against bacteria in the intestine. Now a theory has come forward that perhaps the problem isn’t that the immune system is overactive, it’s that the initial cells that stimulate the immune system to deal with injurious agents to the bowel are not active enough, which then leads to the chronic inflammation.”

Crohn’s disease afflicts 1 million people worldwide, about half of them Americans. About 20 percent of these patients have a blood relative with some form of inflammatory bowel disease.

Traditionally, doctors have used drugs such as steroids and other immunosuppressants to treat Crohn’s disease. And while these medications result in similar remission rates, about 40 percent, they suppress the immune system and can be associated with other side effects.

“While some patients have gotten remarkable results with these agents, we still don’t have the drug we’re really looking for, one that has fewer side effects and is an effective therapy for most patients,” Valentine said.

This finding was disclosed after a national multicenter study of the drug sargramostim was conducted by researchers from the Harvard Medical School, the University of Florida, and the Washington University School of Medicine and was reported in the May 26 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

Tags: Crohn's disease, Leukine, sargramostim, steroids

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Researchers from the University of Nottingham are launching a major clinical trial for evaluating the role of stem cells in rebooting the immune system and their efficacy in treating Crohn’s disease.

The researchers are evaluating if stem cells taken out from a patient’s own body could be used for providing effective remissions in the long run, an evaluation that could save tens of thousands of lives.

From News-Medical.Net:

The Europe-wide trial, which is currently recruiting patients, is the first of its kind in the world to treat Crohn’s. The disease is a chronic ongoing condition that most commonly affects the small intestine and colon. It causes inflammation, deep ulcers and scarring to the wall of the intestine, with main symptoms including pain in the abdomen, diarrhoea, fatigue and weight loss.

It affects around 60,000 people in the UK, with 3-6,000 new cases being diagnosed each year. Currently it has no cure. Normal treatment includes steroids, which cannot be taken long-term, and immune suppressant drugs.

But if the Nottingham-led stem cell therapy is successful, Professor Chris Hawkey and colleagues Dr Paul Fortun and Dr Tony Shonde believe that in the future it could just possibly mean a cure for up to 50 per cent of sufferers. The study is featured on a new TV series starting on November 1 on the Community Channel.

The Broad Medical Research Program of The Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation, a philanthropic organization based in California, funded this stem cell study into Crohn’s Disease at the University of Nottingham.

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A therapy involving drug sargramostim, which is also known by the trade name Leukine, may be useful to provide relief to patients suffering from an often debilitating form of inflammatory bowel disease, Crohn’s disease.

This finding was reported in the May 26 issue of The New England Journal of Medicine by researchers from Harvard Medical School, the University of Florida and Washington University School of Medicine who led a national multicenter study of the drug sargramostim.

From Sciencedaily.com:

“If the drug really works the way we think it works, it’s 180 degrees in the opposite direction of everything else we do to treat Crohn’s disease,” he said. “We still don’t really know what causes Crohn’s disease. The traditional theory has been it’s an overactive or inappropriate immune response against bacteria in the intestine. Now a theory has come forward that perhaps the problem isn’t that the immune system is overactive, it’s that the initial cells that stimulate the immune system to deal with injurious agents to the bowel are not active enough, which then leads to the chronic inflammation.”

Crohn’s disease afflicts 1 million people worldwide, about half of them Americans. About 20 percent of these patients have a blood relative with some form of inflammatory bowel disease.

Traditionally, doctors have used drugs such as steroids and other immunosuppressants to treat Crohn’s disease. And while these medications result in similar remission rates, about 40 percent, they suppress the immune system and can be associated with other side effects.

“While some patients have gotten remarkable results with these agents, we still don’t have the drug we’re really looking for, one that has fewer side effects and is an effective therapy for most patients,” Valentine said.

The best way to treat Crohn’s disease is immune system stimulation, and not immune system suppression, according to Dr. John F. Valentine, an associate professor of gastroenterology, Hepatology and nutrition at UF’s College of Medicine and the Malcom Randall Veterans Affairs Medical Center.

Tags: Crohn's disease, Leukine, sargramostim, steroids

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According to a report by researchers in an issue of The New England Journal of Medicine, nearly half of the patients with a debilitating form of inflammatory bowel disease experienced disappearance of their symptoms within 6 weeks of initiating a medication that was usually reserved for patients afflicted with cancer.

Researchers from Harvard Medical School, the University of Florida, and Washington University School of Medicine assisted in leading the national multicenter study of the drug sargramostim, which is also known by the trade name Leukine.

From Medicalnewstoday.com:

Traditionally, doctors have used drugs such as steroids and other immunosuppressants to treat Crohn’s disease. And while these medications result in similar remission rates, about 40 percent, they suppress the immune system and can be associated with other side effects.

“While some patients have gotten remarkable results with these agents, we still don’t have the drug we’re really looking for, one that has fewer side effects and is an effective therapy for most patients,” Valentine said.

Admissions of patients with a diagnosis of inflammatory bowel disease to Shands at UF medical center have tripled in the past 12 years, he said, adding that he believes the disease is increasingly prevalent nationwide. The U.S. Congress passed the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Act last year, which required the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to study the disease’s prevalence in the United States and gather the demographic characteristics of these patients. The effort seeks to determine the environmental and genetic factors that spur development of the disease. In addition, a Florida bill seeks funding for similar research, to help practitioners learn how common Crohn’s disease is in Florida and whether patients are being treated appropriately to manage the condition, Valentine said.

John F. Valentine, M.D., an associate professor of gastroenterology, hepatology and nutrition at UF’s College of Medicine and the Malcom Randall Veterans Affairs Medical Center, said that these findings would lead to a renewed debate over the cause and best treatment option for Crohn’s disease.

Tags: Crohn's disease, Leukine, sargramostim, steroids

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A prospective new treatment approach has been uncovered by researchers to treat severe asthma by blocking a powerful immune system chemical that is present in large quantities in patients, according to a small study in Thorax.

Severe asthma though rare can be noticed in around one in every ten asthmatics and progressively higher doses of steroids are required to be administered in an attempt to control symptoms.

From Sciencedaily.com:

Seventeen people with severe asthma who still had symptoms, despite being treated with a range of drugs, were also given 25 mg of a drug that blocks TNF alpha production (etanercept) twice weekly, injected below the skin for 12 weeks. Fifteen completed the course.

At the end of the study period, these patients experienced a significant improvement in symptoms and lung function. Two patients were able to discontinue one of their drugs.

The treatment also curbed the inflammatory reaction in the lungs, known as bronchial hyperresponsiveness. And there were few side effects.

The authors caution that further research will be required before this approach can be recommended, but they say that it offers a potentially new avenue of treatment for severe asthma.

The research team investigated tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF alpha) that is found in many chronic inflammatory conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn’s disease, and psoriasis.

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As much as half the patients suffering from an often debilitating form of inflammatory bowel disease can experience their symptoms starting to disappear in as short as just six weeks by initiating use of a medicine generally reserved for cancer patients, researchers reported in the May 26 issue of The New England Journal of Medicine.

Researchers from Harvard Medical School, the University of Florida and Washington University School of Medicine provided assistance to lead this national multicenter study of the drug sargramostim, which is also known by the trade name Leukine.

From Sciencedaily.com:

“If the drug really works the way we think it works, it’s 180 degrees in the opposite direction of everything else we do to treat Crohn’s disease,” he said. “We still don’t really know what causes Crohn’s disease. The traditional theory has been it’s an overactive or inappropriate immune response against bacteria in the intestine. Now a theory has come forward that perhaps the problem isn’t that the immune system is overactive, it’s that the initial cells that stimulate the immune system to deal with injurious agents to the bowel are not active enough, which then leads to the chronic inflammation.”

Crohn‘s disease afflicts 1 million people worldwide, about half of them Americans. About 20 percent of these patients have a blood relative with some form of inflammatory bowel disease.

Traditionally, doctors have used drugs such as steroids and other immunosuppressants to treat Crohn’s disease. And while these medications result in similar remission rates, about 40 percent, they suppress the immune system and can be associated with other side effects.

“While some patients have gotten remarkable results with these agents, we still don’t have the drug we’re really looking for, one that has fewer side effects and is an effective therapy for most patients,” Valentine said.

Dr. John F. Valentine, an associate professor of gastroenterology, hepatology and nutrition at UF’s College of Medicine and the Malcom Randall Veterans Affairs Medical Center, said these findings can lead to renewed debate over cause of Crohn’s disease and the best method of treating it that actually could be immune system stimulation, and not immune system suppression.

Tags: Crohn's disease, Leukine, sargramostim, steroids

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The University of Nottingham researchers recently launched a major clinical trial to identify the role of stem cells for “rebooting” the immune system and offering a cure for Crohn’s disease.

The researchers aimed at finding if the stem cells obtained from a patient’s body could be used for providing effective, long-term remissions for tens of thousands of people.

From News-Medical.Net:

The Europe-wide trial, which is currently recruiting patients, is the first of its kind in the world to treat Crohn’s. The disease is a chronic ongoing condition that most commonly affects the small intestine and colon. It causes inflammation, deep ulcers and scarring to the wall of the intestine, with main symptoms including pain in the abdomen, diarrhoea, fatigue and weight loss.

It affects around 60,000 people in the UK, with 3-6,000 new cases being diagnosed each year. Currently it has no cure. Normal treatment includes steroids, which cannot be taken long-term, and immune suppressant drugs.

But if the Nottingham-led stem cell therapy is successful, Professor Chris Hawkey and colleagues Dr Paul Fortun and Dr Tony Shonde believe that in the future it could just possibly mean a cure for up to 50 per cent of sufferers. The study is featured on a new TV series starting on November 1 on the Community Channel.

The stem cell study into Crohn’s Disease at The University of Nottingham is funded by the Broad Medical Research Program of The Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation, a philanthropic organization based in California.

Tags: Crohn's disease, stem cells, steroids

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An FDA-approved drug, naltrexone, presently recommended and used for easing symptoms of withdrawal from substance abuse could be an effective option for providing relief to people with Crohn’s disease.

This finding was disclosed by a pilot study by Penn State College of Medicine.

Crohn’s disease is believed to affect nearly 500,000 people in the United States alone.

From News-Medical.Net:

Typical treatment for Crohn’s involves using steroids or corticosteroids, which suppress the immune system and can have other toxic side effects. Treatment is often time-intensive and expensive, as well.

“This is a novel approach to treating a common disease, and it’s simple, it’s safe, and it costs far less than current standards of treatment,” Smith said. “We don’t yet know the exact mechanisms involved in how it works, but we’re working on that as well.”

Smith initiated the study using a Dean’s Feasibility Grant — a program designed to encourage investigators to design trials in their area of expertise and seek outside funding. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) recently awarded the College of Medicine $500,000 for the team to continue the study.

Jill P. Smith, a gastroenterology specialist and researcher at the College of Medicine and Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, presented her findings in Los Angeles at the National Association of Gastroenterologists annual Digestive Diseases Week conference.

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The role of stem cells in rebooting the immune system and providing a treatment option is under the scanner by researchers from University of Nottingham launching a major clinical trial to confirm the same.

The involved researchers are examining if the stem cells obtained from a patient’s body can be used to provide effective remissions in the long run.

From News-Medical.Net:

The Europe-wide trial, which is currently recruiting patients, is the first of its kind in the world to treat Crohn’s. The disease is a chronic ongoing condition that most commonly affects the small intestine and colon. It causes inflammation, deep ulcers and scarring to the wall of the intestine, with main symptoms including pain in the abdomen, diarrhoea, fatigue and weight loss.

It affects around 60,000 people in the UK, with 3-6,000 new cases being diagnosed each year. Currently it has no cure. Normal treatment includes steroids, which cannot be taken long-term, and immune suppressant drugs.

But if the Nottingham-led stem cell therapy is successful, Professor Chris Hawkey and colleagues Dr Paul Fortun and Dr Tony Shonde believe that in the future it could just possibly mean a cure for up to 50 per cent of sufferers. The study is featured on a new TV series starting on November 1 on the Community Channel.

This stem cell study into Crohn’s Disease at The University of Nottingham is funded by the Broad Medical Research Program of The Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation, a philanthropic organization based in California.

Tags: Crohn's disease, stem cells, steroids

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