Nearly a year has passed since Hurricane Ian wreaked havoc on southwest Florida, leaving my hometown of Punta Gorda and its neighboring communities in disrepair. As recovery efforts continue, the renovation of my condo has been stalled due to a failure by our association to reach an agreement with…

Roche is initiating a Phase 3 clinical trial to test the experimental gene therapy SPK-8011 in people with hemophilia A. The company announced the move in its 2023 half-year results. At the same time, however, Roche is discontinuing the development of another investigational hemophilia A gene therapy…

Last week, I stumbled upon the Tour de France while aimlessly flipping through TV channels. This annual professional bicycle race is highly esteemed and considered one of the most difficult events in the sport. Watching it was thrilling. The competition was captivating, and the incredible athleticism of the…

Orsini Specialty Pharmacy has been selected to distribute the new gene therapy Roctavian (valoctocogene roxaparvovec-rvox) for use by individuals with hemophilia A, the company announced in a press release. The one-time treatment from BioMarin Pharmaceutical late last month became the first gene therapy ever approved by…

Dosing has begun in a Phase 2b clinical trial evaluating the safety and efficacy of SerpinPC, Centessa Pharmaceuticals’ investigational therapy for hemophilia. The open-label study, called PRESent-2 (NCT05789524), is part of the company’s registrational program for hemophilia B, which includes multiple clinical trials aiming to…

My husband, Jared, is a capable person. He has a degree in business management and excelled in elementary and high school, consistently ranking at the top of his class. He’s an accomplished swimmer, an excellent cook, a decent handyman, and a wonderful dad. I’m not biased as his…

Regulatory agencies in the U.S. and Europe are reviewing applications seeking the approval of fidanacogene elaparvovec, an experimental one-time gene therapy being developed by Pfizer for the treatment of hemophilia B in adults. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) expects to complete the review process and…

When dealing with health issues, does when you were born matter? For those living with hemophilia, the answer is a resounding yes. Having personally experienced the challenges of living with bleeding disorders and survived multiple life-threatening situations, I can’t help but reflect on how different my medical journey might…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the one-time gene therapy Roctavian (valoctocogene roxaparvovec-rvox) for eligible adults with severe hemophilia A.  Roctavian now becomes the first gene therapy to win FDA approval for the treatment of hemophilia A in the U.S. “Today’s approval of Roctavian builds…

One fall evening in 1998, I looked around my dining room table in Houston and saw the faces of men and women who’d become some of my dearest friends over the past year. Laughter flooded the room as we stood in awe at what we’d accomplished. I stood, raised a…