Take a look back at some of this year’s most popular, interesting and memorable stories.
New treatments, health warnings and awards feature in ARR’s top stories for 2025.
Covid: The (unwanted) gift that keeps on giving
Covid – in both and acute and more chronic form – continued to rear its head throughout 2025. But attendees at January’s Immunisation Coalition ASM were treated to some expert insights on how to diagnose and treat long covid.
Associate Professor Anthony Byrne, a Sydney-based respiratory physician whose clinic has seen over 1000 patients with the condition, offered the following advice:
- Fatigue is the most common symptom of long covid, but brain fog, breathlessness, pain and mental health problems also occur frequently.
- Undertake PCR tests in patients who are RAT-negative.
- Nirmatrelvir/ritonavir (Paxlovid), metformin and inhaled steroids can reduce the risk and/or duration of long covid, especially in patients at a high-risk of the condition.
Professor Byrne also emphasised the need to remember that long covid is a respiratory virus.
“It does cause recrudescence and new onset asthma … And occasionally there’s infected bronchitis and pulmonary embolism. There’s also a lot of covid patients and post-covid patients that have sleep apnoea and sleep disorders … this is part of what you’re trained to do.
“This is a virus that’s been around for five years now. It’s not going anywhere.”
Good news for pulmonary fibrosis patients
Data presented at the American Thoracic Society (ATS) International Conference in San Francisco in July was music to the ears of people living with pulmonary fibrosis.
Nerandomilast, a phosphodiesterase 4B with antifibrotic and immunomodulatory effects, passed both a phase 2 and phase 3 study – the first pulmonary fibrosis drug to do so in more than a decade.
“Nerandomilast has shown clear efficacy in slowing the progression of IPF used alone, and has fewer side effects than previous therapies,” said Professor Luca Richeldi, professor of diseases of the respiratory system at the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, director of the UOC of Pneumology at Fondazione Policlinico Gemelli IRCCS and global principal investigator on the new research.
“It is also important to have reached another endpoint: the new drug delays the start of oxygen therapy, which, in my experience, is extremely disabling for these patients, to the point of limiting (and sometimes wiping out) their social life, leading to significant negative effects on their quality of life,” he said.
If you’re ready for me boy, you better push the button and let me know
In September Australian researchers announced they had discovered a protein that functioned as a “self-destruct button” for the influenza virus, highlighting a novel way to prevent severe illness and deaths.
The study, led by Associate Professor Michelle Tate and PhD student Sarah Rosli, found that the protein Gasdermin E was a key player in flu-related lung damage.
“Gasdermin E acts like a ‘self-destruct’ button in lung epithelial cells during infection, causing them to burst and release inflammatory signals,” said Professor Tate.
“When we removed this protein, the lungs stayed healthier, and the flu was less severe. This opens up exciting possibilities for new treatments that help the body fight flu more effectively.”
Multiple strains of the influenza virus can activate Gasdermin E, meaning that stopping the inflammatory signals associated with its activity could be a new way of treating severe flu caused by a range of different influenza strains.
Beware wood heaters, CPAP foam
As winter rolled around and Australians looked for a way to help keep warm, the Centre for Safe Air at the University of Tasmania cautioned against the use of wood heaters.
Researchers estimate that over 700 people die prematurely each year after being exposed to wood heater smoke, a leading source of fine particulate matter (PM2.5). PM2.5 is a known trigger for asthma and can worsen other respiratory conditions with ongoing exposure.
New South Wales was found to have the highest level of wood heater emissions, ahead of Victoria and South Australia. The ACT and the Northern Territory had the lowest level of emissions, with the latter having an estimated zero premature deaths per year.
“For the 2.8 million Australians living with asthma, especially children and older adults, even low levels of smoke can be dangerous. Some experts in the field even compare the health effects of wood heater smoke to passive smoking,” said Asthma Australia spokesperson Dr Chris Pearce. “No one should have to fight to breathe in their own home or community.”
Related
Asthma Australia recommended all jurisdictional governments to implement a ban on the sale and installation of wood heaters in urban and high-density areas.
Elsewhere, the TGA took Phillips Australia to court for allegedly supplying faulty CPAP and BiPAP machines to consumers.
The Department of Health, Disability and Aged Care claimed Phillips continued to supply the machines for at least two years after learning that the products provided by US manufacturers, posed a health risk.
The problematic part was a foam, designed to reduce the operating noise of the machines, that could break down after becoming moist and cause skin, eye and respiratory tract irritation, inflammation, headache, asthma, reproductive system effects and abnormal tissue growth if inhaled.
What to look for in a skincare product
The skincare market has become an increasingly competitive and complicated – leaving many clinicians and consumers confused about what products will actually work, and which products are a waste of money.
But American research, released in July this year, recommended 24 ingredients to treat common skin conditions such as fine lines and wrinkles, acne, dark spots, redness and dry skin.
Retinoids, azelaic acid, glycolic acid and mineral sunscreen were among the products that were given the thumbs up.
“This is the first time experts have come together nationally to cut through the overwhelming number of skin care options,” said Dr Murad Alam, professor of dermatology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. “We wanted to help both doctors and everyday users understand which ingredients are backed by the most expert support.”
Other products were viewed less favourably.
“For instance, while ingredients containing DNA repair enzymes, growth factors and peptides are ubiquitous in over-the-counter formulations, the studies supporting their utility for common cosmetic indications maybe perceived as insufficient or preliminary,” the authors wrote in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology.
“[And] when treating acne, topicals such as mandelic acid and polyhydroxyl acid are more expensive and less likely to be covered by insurance than vitamin A derivatives. Additionally, most of the conditions addressed in this study are considered aesthetic and therefore associated treatments are generally not covered by payers, so the out-of-pocket cost is important to consider.”
Something to keep in mind the next time you reach for a moisturiser or acne cream!
Celebrating individual achievements
Back in January Professor Allen Cheng was named a Companion of the Order of Australia (AC) – the highest honour available – as part of the Australia Day awards.
Professor Cheng was the only medical name to receive this particular honour, which he received for his “eminent service to medicine as an epidemiologist, to infectious and communicable disease research and education, and to national and international public health policy” – particularly during his time as Victoria’s deputy chief health officer when the covid pandemic was at its peak.
“I have a very specific set of skills,” Professor Cheng told Allergy & Respiratory Republic at the time. “It was very gratifying to be able to contribute.”
ARR can neither confirm nor deny whether this was said in a Liam Neeson accent.
“Medicine is a team sport,” he said, “and I have a lot of people to thank for their support and hard work. Individual recognition isn’t always appropriate, or at least doesn’t recognise all the people that contribute.
“So, a small thing I’ll resolve to do is try and pay it forward and nominate other people in the future.”
In addition to Professor Cheng’s gong, four medical professionals were named Officers of the Order of Australia (AO), 27 were named Members of the Order of Australia (AM), 11 were awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) and nine were recognised with Public Service Medals (PSM).
This will be the last Allergy & Respiratory Republic e-news for 2025. We look forward to seeing you back here in 2026. If you have any story ideas or burning issues you think we should follow up, get in touch with us by email.
Wishing you all a safe, healthy and happy holiday season!
Amanda Sheppeard – editor, Specialist Titles and Clinical Update
amanda@medicalrepublic.com.au
Lincoln Tracy– deputy editor, Specialist Titles and Clinical Update
lincoln@medicalrepublic.com.au
Laura Andronicos – journalist, Specialist Titles and Clinical Update
laura@medicalrepublic.com.au
