Ang Li, MD, Joins the Ranks of NHF-Shire Clinical Fellows
The NHF-Shire Clinical Fellowship Program attracts new physicians to the field of nonmalignant hematology and supports their development as clinician-researchers. Since 2003, 38 physicians have committed to careers in bleeding disorders and received high-quality mentored training. As of January, Ang Li, MD, of the Bloodworks Northwest/Washington Center for Bleeding Disorders at the University of Washington (UW) in Seattle, is the 39th NHF-Shire clinical fellow.
Li attended medical school at Baylor College of Medicine and completed his residency training at Massachusetts General Hospital. He is an acting instructor in hematology/oncology at UW and Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, where he cares for patients with benign and malignant hematologic disorders. He is also pursuing a master’s degree in clinical research from the UW Department of Epidemiology.
As an NHF-Shire clinical fellow, Li will pursue training in comprehensive clinical care at the Washington Center for Bleeding Disorders, where he will be mentored by Rebecca Kruse-Jarres, MD, MPH, and David Garcia, MD.
Bayer PROTECT VIII Extension Study
An analysis of Bayer’s PROTECT VIII extension study found that long-term safety and efficacy was consistent with previous data analysis in patients with severe hemophilia A who received treatment with Bayer’s Jivi® for five years. Jivi is an extended half-life factor VIII replacement therapy for hemophilia A patients ages 12 and older.
The PROTECT VIII main study was a partially randomized, open-label trial of 134 males ages 12 to 65 with severe hemophilia A. After completion of the main study, patients could enter an optional extension. Of the 126 patients who completed the main study, 121 entered the extension and 107 continued treatment with Jivi. The data presented were from 33 patients who had completed five years of treatment with Jivi at the time of the analysis.
Bioverativ and Sobi Release Long-Term Study Results
At the American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting & Exposition, Swedish Orphan Biovitrum AB (Sobi) and Bioverativ Inc. announced the results of ASPIRE and B-YOND, the most comprehensive long-term studies of extended half-life factor therapies in hemophilia.
The data from both studies confirmed the safety and sustained efficacy of Eloctate® (for hemophilia A) and Alprolix® (for hemophilia B) over four years of treatment in previously treated adult, adolescent and pediatric patients with severe hemophilia A and B. The results demonstrated that long-term prophylactic treatment consistently improved annualized bleed rates, including joint bleeds, across all patient populations studied and at extended dosing intervals.