The lung disease known as idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), causes inflammation and scarring (fibrosis) in the lungs which hinders a person's ability to process oxygen often causing shortness of breath.
These studies suggest that the co-administration of Actimmune and pirfenidone does not appear to inhibit the individual activity of each compound and that the two compounds may work through complementary pathways.
“The data provides insight into the anti-fibrotic activity of Actimmune and pirfenidone and suggests that co-administration of these two compounds may lead to benefits in patients with IPF,” ssid Lawrence Blatt, chief scientific officer of InterMune.
There are currently no drugs approved by the US Food and Drug Administration or the European Medicines Evaluation Agency for the treatment of IPF.