Research, Care, Education, and Outreach

Cystic Fibrosis is a complicated, multi-organ disease with a plethora of functional defects, although most of the morbidity and mortality associated with CF results from the progressive loss of lung function. CF lung disease is due to chronic inflammation, persistent infection, impaired mucociliary clearance, and susceptibility to damage from oxidative stress.
 

Substantial improvements in quality and longevity of life for CF patients have been achieved over recent years, following the development for the first time of new drugs that directly target “CFTR,” the protein defective in this disease. Emory researchers contributed importantly to this success. While these advances have increased the predicted life expectancy for most people with CF to above 50 years of age, we still lose many of our patients far to young. Furthermore, these new drugs have great impact on pulmonary disease, but they do not solve all of the clinical problems associated with CF. Finally, many CF patients either are not eligible for these drugs or cannot tolerate them for a variety of reasons.  Therefore, our work must continue. 

What will it take to solve this problem? We need to find new ways to think about CF, new ways to focus on wellness, to turn this “disease” into a “condition." 

This is the mission of the Center for Cystic Fibrosis and Airways Disease Research (CF-AIR) at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, established in collaboration with the Emory University School of Medicine: to build a comprehensive program that will lead to new breakthroughs in CF research that will advance the quality and longevity of life for our patients. CF-AIR is a component of The Emory+Children’s CF Center of Excellence, also known as CF@LANTA, which seeks to become the best comprehensive CF program in the country, excellent in research, clinical care, and education/outreach. 

Our clinical program, the Children’s+Emory CF Care Center, provides outstanding care for over 750 people with CF; Dr. Rachel Linnemann is the overall Director of the Care Center. This includes an excellent pediatric clinical program led by Dr. Linnemann and Dr. Matthew Hazen, and an excellent adult clinical program led by Dr. W. Randy Hunt. We have an award-winning “transition program” that helps our young patients learn how to manage this disease as they move out from under their parents’ wings and become independent, potentially going away to college or starting their exciting careers. Further information about our care programs can be found on the “CF Care” page of this website.
 

Our research program is extensive, and targets aspects of this disease spanning from the lungs to the GI tract, the endocrine system, diet and nutrition, exercise and lifestyles, mental health, social determinants of health, and the impact of new therapies on immunometabolism. Further information about our research program can be found on the “For Researchers” page. 

CF patients are living longer, fuller lives, thanks to the continued development of therapies that target the symptoms associated with progressive lung disease. Quality of life decreases dramatically as lung function declines due to irreversible damage. As patients age, other organ systems also show defects in function. Hence, there is no time to waste in developing new understanding of this multifaceted disease, in order to generate new ideas and new therapeutics that will have positive impact.