ICYMI: Highlights From CHEST 2024

Our top content from this year’s CHEST meeting included interviews with experts Juan Carlos Martinez, MD; Johnathan Kurman, MD; and Daniel Howell, MBBS, MSc. It also featured insights on climate change’s impact on chest medicine and data on a promising asthma treatment.

Here are highlights from CHEST 2024; click here to catch up on all our coverage.

5. CHEST Data Shows Low Lung Cancer Screening Awareness in Underserved Communities: Dr Juan Carlos Martinez

Martinez, a third-year resident doctor at Wyckoff Heights Medical Center in Brooklyn, New York, presented his study on awareness and knowledge of lung cancer screening within a diverse underrepresented minority communities (URC) population at CHEST 2024. In an on-site interview with The American Journal of Managed Care^® (AJMC^®), he explained that while patients recognize the severity of lung cancer, there is a lack of knowledge about screening methods; this is likely due to barriers such as education, language, and health care access. To mitigate these barriers, Martinez emphasized the need for improved health literacy initiatives.

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4. Dr Jonathan Kurman Outlines Emerging Bronchoscopic Therapies for COPD

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) management has traditionally relied on bronchodilators, pulmonary rehabilitation, and steroids, along with invasive options like lung transplantation or lung volume reduction surgery. However, these approaches leave a gap in minimally invasive treatments. In this interview, Kurman, assistant professor of medicine at the Medical College of Wisconsin and director of Interventional Pulmonology at Froedtert Hospital, discusses emerging bronchoscopic therapies as minimally invasive treatment options for patients with COPD. He presented on the topic at CHEST 2024 and is an investigator in 4 ongoing clinical trials in their initiation stage.

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3. Dr Daniel Howell Details the Current Types of Therapies for Effective COPD Management

Howell, a clinical assistant professor at NYU Grossman School of Medicine, was 1 of 4 experts involved in a session on current COPD therapies. He shared insights with AJMC on the session’s topics, including the latest evidence surrounding inhaler therapy and the optimization of management through home oxygen therapy. Other topics included the role of roflumilast and azithromycin in reducing COPD exacerbations, as well as the potential benefits of respiratory muscle training to improve breathing mechanics and reduce dyspnea in patients with COPD.

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2. Impact of Air Pollution on Lung Health Sparks Call for Physician-Led Action at CHEST 2024

This article recaps key discussions from CHEST 2024 on the impact of climate change on chest medicine. The topic was introduced by keynote speaker Vanessa Kerry, MD, MSc, director of global and climate health policy in the Department of Environmental Health at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. She highlighted the various effects of climate change and urged clinicians to address them through sustainable practices. Several posters further investigated climate change-related issues, including the impact of air pollution on lung health. Another stressed the need for better education of health care providers to help them counsel patients on preventing the effects of air pollution.

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1. Mepolizumab Reduces Exacerbations in Patients With Severe Asthma, Concurrent COPD, Posters Find

Two posters presented at CHEST 2024 highlighted the efficacy of mepolizumab in reducing exacerbations in patients with severe asthma and those with asthma and concurrent COPD. Mepolizumab, a humanized anti–IL-5 monoclonal antibody, is approved for treating severe asthma with an eosinophilic phenotype. One poster by Bhatt et al showed that mepolizumab initiation significantly reduced both COPD and asthma exacerbation rates in patients with asthma and concurrent COPD. Another poster by Ramakrishnan et al found that mepolizumab was more effective than benralizumab in reducing asthma exacerbations. However, further research into factors like inhaler compliance and baseline eosinophil count is needed.

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