Publications by authors named "Caiaffa M"

Purpose: Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) has an extremely poor prognosis. Despite high initial response rates to chemotherapy and modest survival improvements with the addition of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI), almost all patients experience relapse and fatal outcomes. Recent genomic insights uncovered extensive molecular heterogeneity in addition to the almost uniform loss of RB1 and TRP53.

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  • - This study found two types of patients with severe eosinophilic asthma who respond differently to the medication mepolizumab.
  • - Patients with a family history of asthma, positive skin tests, and higher lung function showed better responses to treatment.
  • - The findings emphasize the importance of tailoring treatment plans to individual patient characteristics for improved outcomes.
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Background: Biological therapies, such as mepolizumab, have transformed the treatment of severe eosinophilic asthma. Although mepolizumab's short-term effectiveness is established, there is limited evidence on its ability to achieve long-term clinical remission.

Objective: To evaluate the long-term effectiveness and safety of mepolizumab, explore its potential to induce clinical and sustained remission, and identify baseline factors associated with the likelihood of achieving remission over 24 months.

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Emerald tree boas (Corallus batesii) are boids that in situ occurs in forested habitats in the Amazon Basin. The mycobacterial species can infect reptiles but the species Mycolicibacterium fortuitum was identified only in feces samples of ex situ Python regius and was isolated from granulomatous lesions of an ex situ Iguana iguana when was still part of the genus Mycobacterium. This article aims to report a mycobacteria infection case in a female Corallus batesii kept under human care.

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Background And Objective: Several randomized controlled trials (RCTs) have shown that benralizumab is characterized by a good profile of efficacy and safety, thereby being potentially able to elicit clinical remission on-treatment of severe eosinophilic asthma (SEA). The main goal of this multicentre observational study was to verify the effectiveness of benralizumab in inducing a sustained remission on-treatment of SEA in patients with or without comorbid chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps (CRSwNP).

Methods: Throughout 2 years of treatment with benralizumab, a four-component evaluation of sustained remission of SEA was performed, including the assessment of SEA exacerbations, use of oral corticosteroids (OCSs), symptom control and lung function.

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Background: This study used infrared thermography (IRT) for mapping the facial and ocular temperatures of howler monkeys, to determine parameters for the diagnosis of febrile processes. There are no published IRT study in this species.

Methods: Were evaluated images of a group of monkeys kept under human care at Sorocaba Zoo (São Paulo, Brazil).

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Purpose: Severe eosinophilic asthma (SEA) patients often present overlapping inflammatory features rendering them eligible for multiple biologic therapies; switching biologic treatment is a strategy adopted to optimize asthma control when patients show partial or no response to previous biologics.

Patients And Methods: ANANKE is a retrospective, multicenter Italian study (NCT04272463). Here, we outline the characteristics and long-term clinical outcomes in naïve-to-biologics and biologics-experienced patients treated with benralizumab for up to 96 weeks.

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Introduction: Clinical remission (CliR) achievement has been recognized as a new potential outcome in severe asthma. Nevertheless, we still lack a detailed profile of what features could better identify patients undergoing clinical remission. In this study, we aim to address this issue, tracing a possible identikit of patients fulfilling remission criteria.

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Background: The Vieira's titi monkey (Plecturocebus vieirai) was recently described and characterized as endemic to Brazil. According to the IUCN red list, this species is classified as critically endangered (CR). At the date of the publication of this manuscript, there are no published data on the health aspects of this species.

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Background: The current definition of severe eosinophilic asthma (SEA) super-responders to biologic treatment does not include patients with other eosinophil-based comorbidities. Although eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis (EGPA) is frequently associated with SEA, we lack data on a possible super-response to biologic treatments in patients suffering from these two diseases. We aim to assess super-responder features in real-life patients with SEA and EGPA treated with mepolizumab and benralizumab.

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Article Synopsis
  • - Severe asthma affects roughly 10% of asthma patients and is marked by poor lung function and high eosinophil counts; this study aims to define asthma remission more clearly using a structured method.
  • - A panel of experts developed and refined a questionnaire through a two-round Delphi method to evaluate consensus on criteria for asthma remission, including clinical and inflammatory aspects.
  • - The analysis confirmed specific criteria for both complete and partial clinical remission, creating a practical tool to assess treatment effectiveness in patients with severe asthma enrolled in the Severe Asthma Network Italy registry.
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Background: Eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis (EGPA) is a rare vasculitis characterized by asthma, systemic manifestations, and blood and tissue eosinophilia.

Objective: To assess the effectiveness and safety of mepolizumab (anti-IL-5) and benralizumab (anti-IL-5Rα) in EGPA for 24 months.

Methods: We conducted a multicenter observational study, including patients with EGPA treated with anti-IL-5/Rα biologics in 9 Italian specialized facilities.

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Background: Mepolizumab and benralizumab are monoclonal antibodies directed against anti-IL-5 and anti-IL5R, respectively, and their use reduces the exacerbation rate and maintains oral corticosteroid requirements in severe eosinophilic asthma. Previous studies have tested the therapeutic switch between two biologics with excellent results, further demonstrating the heterogeneity of asthmatic disease and the complexity of the therapeutic choice. It remains unclear if such patients may improve following a switch from mepolizumab to benralizumab.

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Background: The efficacy of benralizumab has been broadly demonstrated in severe eosinophilic asthma (SEA), but only few real-life studies evaluated its long-term effects. Here we present novel data from the ANANKE study in which a large cohort of SEA patients was treated for up to 96 weeks.

Methods: ANANKE (NCT04272463) is an observational retrospective Italian study investigating the key characteristics of SEA patients (collected during the 12 months prior to benralizumab initiation) and the clinical outcomes during benralizumab treatment (annual exacerbation rate [AER], lung function, asthma control, OCS use, healthcare resource utilization).

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Background: The efficacy of dupilumab as biological treatment of severe asthma and chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps (CRSwNP) depends on its ability to inhibit the pathophysiologic mechanisms involved in type 2 inflammation.

Objective: To assess in a large sample of subjects with severe asthma, the therapeutic impact of dupilumab in real-life, with regard to positive or negative skin prick test (SPT) and CRSwNP presence or absence.

Methods: Clinical, functional, and laboratory parameters were measured at baseline and 24 weeks after the first dupilumab administration.

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  • The case describes a hoary fox pup in Brazil, co-infected with canine distemper virus (CDV) and canine adenovirus type 1 (CAdV-1), which showed severe health issues leading to euthanasia.
  • Pathological findings included mild hepatitis, bronchopneumonia, and corneal problems, with CDV and CAdV-1 antigens identified in various organs through immunohistochemistry.
  • The study highlights the importance of monitoring wildlife diseases to recognize potential conservation threats and the need for mitigation measures.
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Poultry red mites () are primarily ectoparasites of laying hens but also parasitize synanthropic birds in urban contexts. This mite can occasionally attack mammals, including humans, and cause mild to severe dermatitis. Attacks by zoonotic Mesostigmata mites are currently an increasing but still neglected problem of urban life.

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Purpose: Benralizumab effectively reduces severe eosinophilic asthma (SEA) exacerbations in patients with a wide range of baseline blood eosinophil count (BEC). Patients included in real-world studies are often characterized by high mean/median BEC, while patients with BEC close to 300 cells/mm are poorly represented. This post hoc analysis from the Italian study ANANKE aims to define the clinical features and corroborate the efficacy of benralizumab in real world in the BEC 300-450 cells/mm subset of patients.

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Background: Idursulfase and laronidase are drugs used to treat Hunter syndrome (mucopolysaccharidosis type 2) and Scheie syndrome (mucopolysaccharidosis type 1 S), respectively. These are rare lysosomal storage disorders, leading to accumulation of glycosaminoglycans within lysosomes. Failure of early recognition of the disease and/or delay in starting the appropriate treatment result in severe clinical impairment and death.

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Background: Severe asthma is a heterogeneous inflammatory disease driven by eosinophilic inflammation in the majority of cases. Despite biologic therapy patients may still be sub-optimally controlled, and the choice of the best biologic is a matter of debate. Indeed, switching between biologics is common, but no official guidelines are available and real-world data are limited.

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  • Motor vehicle collisions (MVCs) pose a significant risk to wildlife, with a study on 430 mammals in Brazil revealing high rates of traumatic injuries across various body segments.
  • The most commonly injured areas included the abdomen/pelvis and chest, with prevalent conditions like bone fractures and organ ruptures.
  • The findings aim to assist veterinarians in emergency care for wildlife and contribute to forensic investigations related to MVCs.
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  • Brazilian porcupine poxvirus (BPoPV) was identified in a free-ranging adult male hairy dwarf porcupine exhibiting severe skin lesions and lethargy in Brazil.
  • Diagnosis was confirmed through various methodologies, including histopathology and electron microscopy, which revealed characteristic viral inclusion bodies and large brick-shaped virions.
  • Following a comprehensive treatment plan that involved antibiotics and supportive therapies, the porcupine's skin lesions regressed, and post-treatment evaluations showed no remaining viral presence or significant pathology.
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At the international level, it is necessary to apply urban health strategies that can integrate concrete actions to protect and promote health in urban and architectural planning. In cities, the "urban fauna" mostly consists of synanthropic birds (sparrows, starlings, swallows, martins, jackdaws, crows, hawks, gulls, pigeons) that have adapted to a continuous relationship with humans. These animals enrich the ecological network of biodiversity but also pose health problems.

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