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The prevalence of interstitial lung disease (ILD) is high and progressively increasing.1 Mortality and morbidity vary according to ILD subtype, but overall median survival is poor, ranging from 5 to 14 years.2 Irrespective of classification and cause of lung fibrosis, several patients present with progressive-fibrosing ILD (PF-ILD), characterised by a rapid decline in lung function.3
A recent landmark study demonstrated a reduction in PF-ILD disease progression using costly antifibrotic drugs.4 However, half of patients with ILD do not benefit from these expensive antifibrotic drugs but could be better treated with anti-inflammatory or combined treatment. Hence, there is an unmet need for a monitoring tool to phenotype patients with ILD by assessing the amount of pulmonary fibrosis and inflammation to guide treatment choices and monitor response.3
Current monitoring, namely, high-resolution CT (HRCT) and pulmonary function …
Footnotes
Collaborators Piotr Wielopolski, Radiology and Nuclear Medicine Department, Erasmus MC.
Contributors I’ve personally written the editorial.
Funding The authors have not declared a specific grant for this research from any funding agency in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.
Competing interests None declared.
Patient consent for publication Not required.
Provenance and peer review Commissioned; externally peer reviewed.