from the cff website- NIH Director Briefing U.S. Senate

NIH Director Francis Collins and CF Foundation to Brief U.S. Senate on Advancing Disease Research


Cystic Fibrosis Foundation Drug Development Model Spawns More Than 30 Promising Therapies

May 19, 2010

(Bethesda, Md.) – National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director Francis S. Collins, M.D., Ph.D., will lead a briefing on Capitol Hill Thursday, May 20, to discuss how funding for medical research at the NIH can be used more quickly to create new therapies for patients and save lives.

Since being appointed director of the NIH, Collins has stressed the importance of bridging the gap between basic research discoveries and the human testing of drugs. On average, it takes 15 years to translate scientific findings into viable therapies.

Collins created an NIH program—Therapeutics for Rare and Neglected Diseases (TRND)—and cites the drug development efforts of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation as a model: “The CF Foundation has shown the way, has lit up the path…and what’s been learned from CF can be extrapolated, generalized, to hundreds of other diseases.”

Fifty years ago, people with cystic fibrosis, a fatal genetic disease, did not live long enough to attend grade school. Today there are more than 30 CF drugs in development and median life expectancy for someone with the disease is 37 years.

WHAT:

How U.S. investments in medical research at the NIH can be leveraged to create new therapies for patients and save lives.

Accelerating development of medical solutions for chronic diseases

Highlighting lessons learned from other diseases, including CF

Bridging the “Valley of Death” between science discoveries and the creation of new drugs

WHO:

Francis S. Collins, M.D., Ph.D., Director, National Institutes of Health and co-discoverer of the CF gene

Senators Richard J. Durbin (D-Ill.) and Richard C. Shelby (R-Ala.)

Robert J. Beall, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer, Cystic Fibrosis Foundation

Moderator: Margaret Anderson, Executive Director, FasterCures / The Center for Accelerating Medical Solutions

WHEN: Thursday, May 20, 2010, 10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.

WHERE: Dirksen Senate Office Building, G-11

About the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation

The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation is the world’s leader in the search for a cure for cystic fibrosis. The Foundation funds more CF research than any other organization and nearly every CF drug available today was made possible because of Foundation support. Based in Bethesda, Md., the Foundation also supports and accredits a national care center network that has been recognized by the National Institutes of Health as a model of care for a chronic disease. For more information, please visit www.cff.org.

Media Contact:

Laurie Fink: (301) 841-2602; lfink@cff.org

A new inhaled antibiotic, Cayston®, recently received Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval

Cayston was developed in collaboration with Gilead Sciences, Inc., and is the first CF drug to advance — from beginning to end — through the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation’s drug development pipeline.


Cystic fibrosis is a complex disease that requires different therapies to treat a range of problems. Cayston provides an important alternative to existing antibiotics, and may mean a shortened daily treatment regimen for some CF patients.

Since the 1980s, the Foundation has played an integral role in the development of five essential drugs for the treatment of CF. Executive Vice President for Medical Affairs Preston W. Campbell, III, M.D., talks about the Foundation’s role and what this new drug means for CF patients.

What is Cayston?


Cayston is an inhaled form of the antibiotic aztreonam lysine developed by Gilead. Because chronic lung infections are a problem for those with cystic fibrosis, antibiotics are a vital part of CF care. Antibiotics help fight infections by attacking the bacteria that cause them.

However, as bacteria are exposed to antibiotics over time, they may develop resistance. As bacteria develop resistance, the number of antibiotics that are effective in killing the bacteria decreases. Cayston provides a much-needed antibiotic alternative for cystic fibrosis patients, who often develop resistance to existing antibiotics.

Cayston also shortens treatment time for CF patients. A typical CF treatment regimen of airway clearance, inhaled medications and pancreatic enzymes may take patients up to several hours per day to complete.

Cayston is administered with a new device called the Altera® Nebulizer System that allows patients to take the medicine in less than five minutes. This is up to four times faster than other nebulized antibiotics.

Where can I learn more about Cayston?

Patients interested in learning more about Cayston should consult their doctors.

A Cayston call center, 877-7CAYSTON (877-722-9786), launched by Gilead and a subsidiary of the CF Foundation, also is available to assist with insurance verification, co-pay costs, claims support and help for those without insurance.

The approval of Cayston is a significant milestone in the Foundation’s ongoing efforts to develop new treatments for CF. Currently, more than 30 potential treatments are in the CF Foundation’s drug development pipeline — any of which could have a profound impact on the disease.

The Foundation estimates that more than a dozen Phase 3 clinical trials will be completed by 2013 — a huge success that drives our continued optimism for finding a cure.

Learn More
http://www.cff.org/aboutCFFoundation/Publications/connections/May2010/New-Drug-Approved-for-Cystic-Fibrosis.cfm

Peddal Boats at Waller Mill Park

So last weekend Zach and I decided to go out and just spend some time outdoors for a while. One of our favorite spots to go is out to Waller Mill Park in Williamsburg. It is a great little place for picnics, nature trails, fishing, canoeing or kyaking and for something quick: Peddal boats!

So in efforts to get some exercise and be out in the sunshine for a bit, we took out a peddal boat and headed down the lake! Here are some pictures of the gorgeous lake and some vegetation & wildlife (and I dont mean us!). It was a nice morning, we had a good time and it was relaxing.

For more informaiton on Waller Mill Park in Williamsburg Virginia check out the City of Williamsburg website: http://www.williamsburgva.gov/Index.aspx?page=477

Here are pictures from out mini-venture!