The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has given regenerative medicine advanced therapy (RMAT) designation to Roctavian, an investigational gene therapy by BioMarin Pharmaceutical for severe hemophilia A. The designation is “a critical program to advance the efficient development and regulatory review of regenerative medicine products that have the…

Grab the factor, syringes, butterfly needles, drapes, Band-Aids, self-adherent wrap, sharps container, and tourniquet! These things are usually what comes to mind when we think about hemophilia care. Medical supplies are the first thing we think of when we plan for day-to-day life with hemophilia. Preventing and treating bleeds…

My adult son, Julian, does a wonderful job managing his hemophilia. He infuses twice a week per doctor’s orders, and if he has a breakthrough bleed, he treats as needed. Julian is extremely fortunate, because throughout his 24 years, hemophilia has not been the center of his life. His journey…

People with mild to moderate hemophilia, in particular women with the disease, face unique challenges, many that are specifically linked to a lack of information and insufficient engagement with other patients and healthcare providers, according to a panel of U.S. experts. In a recent study, these experts proposed new…

My mom asked me last week if I ever curse my dad for giving me hemophilia. It was a fair question. Recently, I had a bad joint bleed in my shoulder. And by that, I mean a really painful shoulder bleed. A wake-up-at-3-a.m.-in-excruciating-pain shoulder bleed.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted fast track designation to efanesoctocog alfa, an investigational factor VIII (FVIII) replacement therapy for treating hemophilia A, Sanofi, one of the therapy’s developers, announced in a press release. This designation is given to accelerate the development and review of medications…

When given as a prophylactic, or preventive therapy, Advate worked better than on-demand treatment at lowering the number of spontaneous bleeds in people with moderate or severe hemophilia A, according to seven-year data from a real-world study. A separate analysis of the study, called AHEAD International (NCT02078427),…

A few years ago, I went to a tattoo convention. Before I could enter, I was required to sign a liability release. The form said that people with bleeding disorders (and a long list of other conditions) should not get tattoos. Needless to say, I am not always a…

A single dose of the experimental gene therapy SPK-8016 showed promising safety and efficacy in lowering the frequency of bleeds and the need for infusions in men with severe hemophilia A. These preliminary findings from an ongoing Phase 1/2 trial (NCT03734588) were presented by Spencer Sullivan, MD,…

When I tell people I’m married to someone with hemophilia, I get different reactions. Some people are genuinely curious and want to know more about my husband’s condition. They’ll ask several questions about the hows and whys of his bleeds, and are often curious about treatment. On the other hand,…