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Most egalitarians accept that a just society would not only require its members to share fairly in each other¿s fortunes and misfortunes but also empower them to decide various aspects of their lives for themselves. Egalitarians face consequent questions about the relevant types of luck as well as the contours of the pertinent decision-making liberties. They also face questions about how to assign liability for the costs and benefits generated when individuals exercise those liberties. For illustration, consider some issues concerning luck, liberty, and liability raised by procreation. Egalitarians need to decide whether treatment for involuntarily infertile individuals should be publicly funded because of its impact on their welfare, or resources, or capabilities. They also need to decide whether there are any limits on parents¿ rights to decide the size of their families, and the extent to which the costs of reproductive choices should be borne by parents alone (Casal and Williams 2004).
(2006) Williams, AndrewIdiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) remains a challenging disease with no drugs available to change the trajectory. It is a condition associated with excessive and highly progressive scarring of the lungs with remodelling and extracellular matrix deposition. It is a highly "destructive" disease of the lungs. The diagnosis of IPF is challenging due to continuous evolution of the disease, which also makes early interventions very difficult. The role of vascular endothelial cells has not been explored in IPF in great detail. We do not know much about their contribution to arterial or vascular remodelling, extracellular matrix changes and contribution to pulmonary hypertension and lung fibrosis in general. Endothelial to mesenchymal transition appears to be central to such changes in IPF. Similarly, for epithelial changes, the process of epithelial to mesenchymal transition seem to be the key both for airway epithelial cells and type-2 pneumocytes. We focus here on endothelial and epithelial cell changes and its contributions to IPF. In this review we revisit the pathology of IPF, mechanistic signalling pathways, clinical definition, update on diagnosis and new advances made in treatment of this disease. We discuss ongoing clinical trials with mode of action. A multidisciplinary collaborative approach is needed to understand this treacherous disease for new therapeutic targets.
(2025) Lu, Wenying; Teoh, Alan; Waters, Maddison; Haug, Greg; Shakeel, Ilma; Hassan, Imtaiyaz; Shahzad, Affan Mahmood; Larsson Callerfelt, Anna-Karin; Piccari, Lucilla; Sohal, Sukhwinder SinghThis study aims to understand how osteoporosis medication acceptance varies across countries with differing guidance on treatment threshold and influence of clinical and demographic factors. A total of 79.2% accepted treatment at a fracture probability at or below the treatment threshold. Fracture history and age did not strongly impact acceptance, suggesting a need for improved fracture risk communication. Purpose: This part of the Improving Risk Communication in Osteoporosis (RICO) study aims to understand patients' willingness to initiate osteoporosis treatment given a hypothetical fracture probability-derived from the FRAX® Risk Assessment Tool-and how age, fracture history, and numeric literacy may influence this. Methods: In 2022-2023, 332 postmenopausal women at risk of fracture were interviewed from nine countries to determine participants' Fracture Risk Decision Point (FRDP), the lowest probability of major osteoporotic fracture at which they would accept an osteoporosis medication. Participants' FRDP was evaluated given eight hypothetical 10-year FRAX scores. Results: In countries with FRAX-based treatment thresholds, over half of the participants per country reported an FRDP that was below the threshold. Collectively, 79.2% demonstrated FRDPs at or below their respective threshold. Age and fracture history did not have a strong influence on FRDP; however, those who demonstrated higher levels of numeric literacy reported a significantly higher median FRDP (10%) compared to those who showed lower levels (5%, p < 0.001). Conclusions: Most patients were willing to accept an osteoporosis medication prescription at a hypothetical FRAX probability that was even lower than that of their nationally recommended treatment threshold. Literacy scores had a significant influence on FRDP whereas age and fracture history did not.
(2025) Sharma, Mitali; Beaudart, Charlotte; Clark, Patricia; Fujiwara, Saeko; Adachi, Jonathan D.; Papaioannou, Alexandra; Messina, Osvaldo D.; Morin, Suzanne N.; Kohlmeier, Lynn; Nogués Solán, Xavier; Leckie, Carolyn; Harvey, Nicholas C.; Kanis, John A.; Reginster, Jean-Yves; Hiligsmann, Mickaël; Silverman, Stuart L. (2024) Cruz-Chamorro, Dario Alexander; Caguana Vélez, Oswaldo Antonio; Martínez-Tomás, Raquel