NONALCOHOLIC FATTY LIVER DISEASE & NASH NEWS UPDATES
New Study in China Examines Incidence of Metabolic Disorders in Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Patients
May 13, 2021
This study looked at the prevalence and risk factors for MAFLD (metabolic associated fatty liver disease in a population of Chinese patients who were diagnosed with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.
They examined 139,700 patients and found a MAFLD prevalence rate of 26.1% and that those who were overweight, as defined by their BMI had a MAFLD prevalence rate of 27.4% and if defined as obese, 59.8%. Many other risk factors were also studied and results shared in this study.
The paper does make the claim that the term NAFLD has been replaced with MAFLD. "Metabolic associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD), formerly known as nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), is a new definition of liver disease associated with known metabolic dysfunction and is the most common chronic liver disease worldwide."
The link to the original paper is: https://bmcgastroenterol.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12876-021-01782-w
Restricting excessive consumption of added sugars may reduce NAFLD risk in children
March 30, 2021
News Medical Life Sciences
“NAFLD affects more than 1-in-10 children in the U.S. and now is the nation's most common chronic liver disease within this population. The disease can lead to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), a chronic condition that can lead to serious illness, liver transplants, and death. Risk factors include obesity and family history.” "In this review, researchers focused on studies that linked excessive fructose intake to children with NAFLD, interventions that restricted fructose, and identification of related metabolic biomarkers."
Theratechnologies Announces New Data Demonstrating Tesamorelin's Positive Effect...
March 25, 2021
Financial Post
“The data presented at ENDO 2021 highlights tesamorelin’s unique mechanism of action that addresses the underlying cause of liver disease and further supports the Phase 3 development of this novel medicine for the potential treatment of NASH,” said Dr. Christian Marsolais, Senior Vice President and Chief Medical Officer at Theratechnologies.”
Gilead and Novo Nordisk Expand NASH Clinical Collaboration
March 19, 2021
BioSpace
“Gilead is pleased to expand our collaboration with Novo Nordisk and advance understanding of the potential for combination approaches in treating people living with cirrhosis due to NASH,” said Mark Genovese, MD, Senior Vice President, Inflammation Clinical Development at Gilead Sciences. “This study is the latest example of our persistent focus on driving innovation to improve the lives of people living with liver diseases and fibrosis.”
One Major Effect of Drinking Diet Soda Every Day, Says Science
February 17, 2021
eatthis.com
"One study suggests drinking just one of the artificially sweetened beverages daily was linked to an 8% higher risk of type 2 diabetes"
https://www.eatthis.com/news-one-major-effect-of-drinking-diet-soda-every-day/
Nearly a third of obese adults with NAFLD achieve weight loss
February 12, 2021
Helio Gastroenterology
Can fatty liver patients lose weight and keep it off? Many can be successful, while others struggle and likely could use additional support.
Healio Gastroenterology spoke with Anna S. Lok, MD, professor of internal medicine, director of clinical hepatology, University of Michigan, about results from the ongoing TARGET-NASH study assessing weight loss and weight regain in NAFLD patients.
Semaglutide Shows Promise for Fatty Liver Disease
January 21, 2021
Cancer Health
"Semaglutide, a medication used to treat type 2 diabetes, increased the likelihood of improvement in non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) without worsening liver fibrosis, according to research presented at the at the AASLD virtual Liver Meeting. What’s more, combining semaglutide with other drugs led to greater improvements in various measures of fibrosis, metabolism and liver health."
"In people with NASH, combining semaglutide with cilofexor or firsocostat may provide additional benefits compared with semaglutide alone, Alkhouri and colleagues concluded."
https://www.cancerhealth.com/article/semaglutide-promise-fatty-liver-disease
People suffering from liver diseases more at risk from COVID-19
January 18, 2021
Jerusalem Post
This study which included 382 patients, found that people suffering from Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD) have been found to be roughly three times as likely to die from coronavirus than those who did not suffer from any liver disease, according to a study done at Sheba Medical Center.
NONALCOHOLIC FATTY LIVER DISEASE & NASH NEWS UPDATES
Non-Invasive Detection of Liver Disease In Community Health Centers Enhances Patient Engagement...
October 7, 2020
HCPLive
"Physicians should consider integrating non-invasive, point-of-care liver examinations as a way to improve patient intake, outcomes, lower costs and enhance income stream. FibroScan, for example, is an FDA cleared technology for the diagnosis and monitoring of adult patients as part of an overall evaluation of liver health."
Non-Invasive Test to Detect and Monitor for Liver Disease Among Veterans Signals...
Non-Invasive Test to Detect and Monitor for Liver Disease Among Veterans Signals Clinical Trend for All Americans
October 6, 2020
HCPLive
"The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) has implemented several innovative strategies to manage liver disease. This has been illustrated with success in identifying, treating and curing a significant portion of veterans with chronic hepatitis C infection. Now, major efforts are being undertaken to implement an effective population health management strategy for veterans with NAFLD that may present a path forward for the rest of country."
Madrigal Pharmaceuticals Announces Three Abstracts Accepted by The Liver Meeting Digital Experience™
Madrigal Pharmaceuticals Announces Three Abstracts Accepted by The Liver Meeting Digital Experience™, The American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases Meeting in November 2020, including Positive Data from Ongoing Open Label Arm of Resmetirom 52 Week Phase 3 MAESTRO-NAFLD-1 Trial
October 2, 2020
Madrigal Pharmaceuticals
- High accuracy in predicting advanced NASH fibrosis (F2-F3) in Phase 3 MAESTRO-NASH study using clinical characteristics and simple, readily available non-invasive imaging and biomarkers
- Data from ongoing MAESTRO-NAFLD-1 open label arm confirm robust liver fat reduction on MRI-PDFF and reduction in liver fibrosis measured on magnetic resonance elastography (MRE) at Week 16 of resmetirom treatment
- Quality of life improvements in resmetirom-treated patients demonstrated in NASH Phase 2 study
- Dr. Stephen Harrison will present resmetirom data from ongoing Phase 3 MAESTRO studies at AASLD on Friday November 13, 2020
Theratechnologies to Develop Tesamorelin for the Treatment of NASH in the General Population
September 14, 2020
BioSpace
" Theratechnologies Inc.. (Theratechnologies) (TSX: TH) (NASDAQ: THTX), a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of innovative therapies, is pleased to announce that it plans to pursue Phase 3 clinical development of tesamorelin for the treatment of Non-Alcoholic Steatohepatitis (NASH) in the general population."
“After careful review of our file and discussions with our scientific advisers, we made the decision to pursue the Phase 3 development of tesamorelin for the treatment of NASH in the general population,” said Mr. Paul Lévesque, President and Chief Executive Officer, Theratechnologies.'
Asian Lean Patients With NAFLD Are 53% Less Likely To Have Cirrhosis, Cardiovascular, And Metabolic
September 10, 2020
TargetRWE
"As expected, we found that most patients with NAFLD were overweight or obese and only 13% had normal BMI (lean NAFLD). Across all races and ethnicities, NAFLD patients with normal BMI were less likely to have cirrhosis, cardiovascular, or metabolic diseases than those who are obese," said Anna Lok, MD, Professor of Medicine at the University of Michigan, and senior author. "Even so, we need to help NAFLD patients with normal BMI to get rid of the fat in their liver and to understand if their liver, cardiovascular, and metabolic diseases progress at slower rates than those who are obese."
The Battle Against Growing Burden of “Silent” Liver Disease Begins with Early Detection
September 8, 2020
HCPLive
"The key message for caregivers is that NAFLD is manageable, and potentially reversible if caught in its early stages. Diet and exercise are the most effective treatments, but poor adherence often makes this a challenge for many people."
Postmenopausal women at risk for nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, review suggests
August 18, 2020
Science Daily
"A new review suggests that following menopause, women are at higher risk for developing nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), a chronic condition caused by the build-up of excess fat in the liver not caused by alcohol."
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/08/200817191747.htm
Merck & Hanmi to develop, commercialize therapy for NASH
August 13, 2020
Bio Spectrum
"Merck will be granted an exclusive license to develop, manufacture and commercialize efinopegdutidein the United States and globally to treat nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH)."
Researchers find promising therapy to fight epidemic of liver disease
July 27, 2020
Medical Press
"Currently, most leading therapeutic drugs undergoing clinical trials for NASH are small molecules given as a systemic treatment," Rincon said. "Our data show, in contrast, that the use of siRNA to reduce the levels of MCJ in the liver may constitute an alternative therapeutic strategy." Journal information: Nature Communications
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2020-07-therapy-epidemic-liver-disease.html
Women Suffer Less NAFLD but More Advanced Fibrosis
July 25, 2020
Medscape
"Women have a lower risk of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease compared with men, but those who do develop the disease are significantly more likely than are men to develop advanced fibrosis, according to data from a meta-analysis of more than 62,000 individuals."
https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/934059
Fatty liver disease a growing public health concern in Canada: study
July 13, 2020
Global News Network
"Doctors are warning that soaring rates of a common, but often undetected, liver disease could impose an enormous burden on Canadian health care over the next decade if there isn’t more public awareness."
https://globalnews.ca/news/7170904/nonalcoholic-fatty-liver-disease-canada-study/
NAFLD & NASH Epidemic Growing
June 29, 2020
Canadian NASH Network
First National Study Predicts an Escalating Epidemic of Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD)
NONALCOHOLIC FATTY LIVER DISEASE & NASH NEWS UPDATES
Terns Pharmaceuticals Initiates the LIFT Study, a Phase 2a Clinical Trial of TERN-101 for the Treatm
Business Wire via Yahoo Finance!
June 19, 2020
"Terns Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a global biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering and developing innovative therapies to treat liver disease and cancer, today announced that it has screened the first patient for the LIFT study, a Phase 2a clinical trial of TERN-101, a liver-selective farnesoid X receptor (FXR) agonist, the company's lead development candidate for the treatment of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH)."
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/terns-pharmaceuticals-initiates-lift-study-183000553.html
NAFLD in pregnancy increases risks for mother and baby
EurekAlert!
June 9, 2020
"Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in pregnancy has nearly tripled over the past ten years. It increases risks for both mother and baby, including hypertensive complications of pregnancy, bleeding after delivery, and preterm birth, report investigators in the Journal of Hepatology, published by Elsevier."
https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2020-06/e-nip060420.php
Should you be screened for fatty liver disease?
Texarcana Gazzette
May 31, 2020
"So, should you be screened for NAFLD? Considering how prevalent NAFLD is and how many folks don't know they have it, researchers suggest anyone with visceral abdominal fat — that's fat around your middle — insulin resistance or Type 2 diabetes get screened, initially using ultrasound. If NAFLD shows up, then you should see a hepatologist (liver specialist) for an MRI and treatment."
Non-Invasive Technology for Measuring & Monitoring Liver Fat
May 28, 2020
HIT Consultant
Scott Howell, D.O., MPH&TM, CPE, is an advisor for Echosens, The Liver Company.
"The point of non-invasive, painless technology is that these tools can quickly and easily measure the amount of liver stiffness and fat to better target more expensive or more invasive diagnostic procedures – saving time and resources for clinicians by eliminating patients who don’t need additional assessment."
Intercept hits regulatory snag at FDA, likely delaying NASH drug’s approval
May 22, 2020
Biopharma
"The company said that the agency had requested additional data for obeticholic acid and thus pushed the upcoming advisory committee meeting back from June 9, thereby delaying its decision on approval, which had also been scheduled for June 26."
Can-Fite Receives Notice of Allowance for Namodenoson Patent in the Treatment of NASH & NAFLD
May 21, 2020
Can-Fite BioPharma Ltd. Press Release
"Can-Fite BioPharma Ltd. (NYSE American: CANF) (TASE:CFBI), a biotechnology company advancing a pipeline of proprietary small molecule drugs that address inflammatory, cancer and liver diseases, today announced the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) has issued a Notice of Allowance for the Company’s patent titled, "Method for treating NASH accompanied by fibrosis using CI-IB-MECA". The allowance follows Can-Fite’s recent announcement of highly encouraging data from its Phase II study of its drug candidate Namodenoson, generically known as CI-IB-MECA, in the treatment of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) with or without non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH)."
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/fite-receives-notice-allowance-namodenoson-110000312.html
French drug maker Genfit says NASH drug fails late-stage clinical trial
May 11, 2020
Biotech: By ADAM FEUERSTEIN @adamfeuerstein
"French drug maker Genfit said Monday that its lead drug, Elafibranor, failed to improve outcomes for patients with the fatty liver disease NASH, according to an interim analysis of a late-stage clinical trial."
Novo Nordisk's diabetes med semaglutide shows promise in NASH
May 9, 2020
FiercePharma
Drug development for non-alcoholic steatohepatitis has witnessed plenty of failures—and plenty of excitement as multiple players race toward market. Now, Novo Nordisk's popular GLP-1 diabetes drug semaglutide has racked up some encouraging clinical results that take it one step closer to the finish line."
https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2020-05/w-fld050520.phphttps://www.fiercepharma.com/pharma/novo-nordisk-s-diabetes-blockbuster-semaglutide-shows-promise-nash-but-questions-remain
Fatty liver disease is under diagnosed in the US
May 6, 2020
"In the Alimentary Pharmacology & Therapeutics analysis of information on 10,826,456 adults, the prevalence of NAFLD was 5.7%. NAFLD progressed to the more serious liver disease called cirrhosis in 39% of patients with NAFLD over 8 years of follow-up. Cardiovascular disease, kidney impairment, high cholesterol, and diabetes were linked with higher risks of disease progression."
https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2020-05/w-fld050520.php
Screening for liver stiffness at the state fair yields high results, response
May 5, 2020
Healio Gastroenterology and Liver Disease
"Fatty liver disease is in 30% of Americans and there is not a quick way to test and a lot of people don’t know about it. We did this test to see how many people we could get with this quick liver determination,” Salem told Healio Gastroenterology and Liver Disease. “We chose the Minnesota State Fair because it has the largest population in the United States for 5 days.”
Study links exercise to the prevention of liver cancer
April 23, 2020
Medical News Today
"By the end of the trial, the inactive mice had fatty liver disease, a precursor of liver cancer, while the other group did not."
"The mice in both groups had obesity and were candidates for diabetes. However, far more of the sedentary mice — 64% compared with 15% — developed liver cancer."
Full published study: https://www.journal-of-hepatology.eu/article/S0168-8278(20)30104-5/fulltext
Coronavirus health warning: Obesity bigger risk than heart disease or diabetes
April 22, 2020
Express.co.uk
"It follows research showing obesity is a bigger risk factor for deadly complications of Covid-19 than heart disease, high blood pressure and diabetes put together in the under-50s."
NONALCOHOLIC FATTY LIVER DISEASE & NASH NEWS UPDATES
Mediterranean diet linked to lower inflammation, healthy aging
April 20, 2020
Harvard Health Publishing - Harvard Health Medical School
“Many previous studies have found that people who regularly consume the Mediterranean diet have lower rates of bowel cancer, insulin resistance, fatty liver disease, and other diseases."
Research Suggests Liver Cancer Prevention Strategy Should Include NASH, Elderly Patients
April 17, 2020
CancerNetwork
“The most pronounced increase was found in PLC caused by NASH, suggesting that weight management and obesity control deserve more attention in PLC primary prevention schedules, the authors wrote." PLC is Primary Liver Cancer.
Redefining non-alcoholic fatty liver disease: what’s in a name?
April 17, 2020
TheLancet.com: May 2020 Editorial
"Following a survey and Delphi process, the term “metabolic associated fatty liver disease” (MAFLD) was selected to replace NAFLD."
"Substantial momentum will be required to fully adopt the proposed change from NAFLD to MAFLD, and there are worthy arguments to be made that redefining and renaming the disease risks confusing patients and clinicians alike."
https://www.thelancet.com/pdfs/journals/langas/PIIS2468-1253(20)30091-1.pdf
UMN researchers bring little known liver disease into the spotlight
April 16, 2020
Minnesota Daily
"NASH increases the risk of cardiovascular disease and complications,” said Peter Crawford, review co-author and University professor of medicine. “In fact, the most common cause of death of people with NASH is cardiac disease.” (April 5, 2020)
Madrigal MAESTRO Phase 3 NASH Trials Continue without Protocol Modifications...
April 16, 2020
"CONSHOHOCKEN, Pa., April 14, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Madrigal Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:MDGL) today announced that in response to guidance from regulatory agencies, measures for COVID-19 at impacted sites have been put in place for its Phase 3 MAESTRO-NASH and MAESTRO-NAFLD-1 studies, allowing both studies to continue without changes to the protocol. Both MAESTRO studies are well-established and have been recruiting according to plan. At a recently conducted Data Monitoring Committee (DMC) meeting it was recommended that Phase 3 studies proceed without modification."
Regular exercise could help prevent liver cancer
April 15, 2020
“If the present studies in an animal model that closely resembles humans with fatty liver disease can be replicated in patients, it is likely that exercise could delay the onset of liver cancer and mitigate its severity, if not completely prevent it – thereby greatly improving patient outcomes...”
https://telanganatoday.com/regular-exercise-could-help-prevent-liver-cancer
Health Matters: Treating Fatty Liver Disease in Children
April 15, 2020
Health Matters: NBC
"While it typically presents with no symptoms—doctors say fatty liver disease can come with some dangerous side effects. “There are associated conditions, such as diabetes, insulin resistance, hyper cholesterol,” said Dr. Archi Ramaswami, a pediatric gastroenterologist with Golisano Children’s Hospital."
https://www.nbc-2.com/story/42000178/health-matters-treating-fatty-liver-disease-in-children
Coronavirus Infection and Patients with NAFLD
April 13, 2020
Journal of Hepatology
"Patients with NAFLD had higher risk of disease progression, higher likelihood of abnormal liver function from admission to discharge and longer viral shedding time when compared with non-NAFLD subjects."
https://www.journal-of-hepatology.eu/article/S0168-8278(20)30206-3/fulltext
Will FDA Approve First NASH Drug In 2020?
April 11, 2020
NASDAQ site
NASDAQ posted a list of 21 public companies currently researching new drugs for NASH.
"Obesity and type 2 diabetes increase the risk of developing NASH. With the rising prevalence of both obesity and type 2 diabetes, it is only natural that the number of NSAH cases is going to increase. Globally, NASH is prevalent in 10% to 30% of the population."
https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/will-fda-approve-first-nash-drug-in-2020-2020-04-09
Novant Health initiates phase 2 COVID-19 trial with CytoDyn’s Leronlimab
April 8, 2020
Can-Fite BioPharma Ltd Press Release
"Can-Fite BioPharma Ltd. a biotechnology company advancing a pipeline of proprietary small molecule drugs that address inflammatory and liver diseases, today announced that its Phase II exploratory NAFLD/NASH study with Namodenoson achieved its efficacy endpoints, while continuing to demonstrate a good safety profile."
Can-Fite Reports Positive Top Line Results from its Phase II NASH Study with Namodenoson
April 8, 2020
Can-Fite BioPharma Ltd Press Release
"Can-Fite BioPharma Ltd. a biotechnology company advancing a pipeline of proprietary small molecule drugs that address inflammatory and liver diseases, today announced that its Phase II exploratory NAFLD/NASH study with Namodenoson achieved its efficacy endpoints, while continuing to demonstrate a good safety profile."
Sarcopenia is a new risk factor of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease in patients with IBD
April 7, 2020
Digestive Diseases — Kang MK, et al.
"This study was sought to assess whether sarcopenia is associated with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) individuals. The results of this study indicate that 11.1% was the prevalence of nonalcoholic fatty liver in IBD patients, and sarcopenia was an independent risk factor."
Potential early biomarker to track development of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease
April 6, 2020
JOSLIN DIABETES CENTER
"...recent research from Dr. Kulkarni's lab at Joslin has uncovered a biomarker in humans tied to the development of NAFLD that might help doctors detect early stages of the disease."
https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2020-04/jdc-peb040620.php
UMN researchers bring little known liver disease into the spotlight.
April 6, 2020
Minnesota Daily
"The researchers published a review last month about the liver disease, called nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). NASH is initially symptomless and difficult to identify and is commonly found in patients with metabolic disorders like diabetes, obesity and high cholesterol. Researchers said weight loss surgery may be a good treatment for the disorder."
What's in the News?
It’s High Time NAFLD Was Renamed, Experts Say
April 5, 2020
"An expert panel has called for renaming non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), preferring the name metabolic-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) to better reflect the drivers of the disease and to improve efforts to prevent and treat it."
https://www.hepmag.com/article/high-time-nafld-renamed-experts-say
What's in the News?
Organoids for the Development of Drugs and Diagnostics for NASH
April 4, 2020
"Organoids at different stages of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) progression have been created to help in drug design and identification of diagnostic biomarkers."
"Traditionally drug candidates for the disease were tested on animals fed a ‘NASH-inducing diet’; however, researchers suggest this is impractical and so for their study, published in Biomaterials, they harvested cells from the livers of NASH mice at three different stages of the disease and grew them into organoids."
What's in the News?
New Diagnostic Methods Needed for NASH Patients
April 3, 2020
“The 3 non-invasive methods we investigated agreed on a NASH diagnosis for only about one-fifth of the participants in the database,” Friedman said in a statement. “These results imply that better methods are needed to predict NASH.”
https://www.mdmag.com/medical-news/new-diagnostic-methods-nash-patients
What's in the News?
Liver Cancer Increase Driven Mainly by NASH in Men Over 60
April 2, 2020
March 23, 2020: Medscape https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/927374
"The findings come from an analysis of data from the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) Study 2017, published online March 23 in Cancer."
"From 1990 to 2017, the number of cancer cases increased nearly threefold in older men and more than twofold in older women (aged 60 years or more). This increase was driven mainly by an increase in liver cancer caused by nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), also termed fatty liver disease, note the authors."
Keywords: nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, NASH