Source: RI-MUHC.
The Arthritis Society recently selected research conducted by Dr. Sabrina Hoa as a Masters student in epidemiology at McGill University for its Top 10 Research Advances of 2019 listing. Now an assistant professor at the Université de Montréal, Dr. Hoa completed the study on scleroderma, an autoimmune disease, as a trainee at the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (RI-MUHC), under co-supervisors Dr. Marie Hudson (McGill University) and Dr. Sasha Bernatsky (RI-MUHC). The work was published this fall in the journal Rheumatology (Oxford).
The study examines how administering drugs to suppress the immune system can preserve lung function and potentially prevent progression in mild stages of interstitial lung disease (ILD), which is a life-threatening complication of scleroderma. The findings suggest a promising window of opportunity to treat ILD early on, when it is mild, to prevent its progression to a life-threatening complication. With further study, this treatment approach could save lives for those with scleroderma.
Read more on the Arthritis Society’s website.
Publication
Hoa S, Bernatsky S, Steele RJ, Baron M, Hudson M. Association between immunosuppressive therapy and course of mild interstitial lung disease in systemic sclerosis. Rheumatology (Oxford). 2019 Sep 19. pii: kez407.
January 8 2020