For patients and physicians grappling with ATTR-cardiac amyloidosis (ATTR-CM), Attruby® (acoramidis) brings the possibility of hope.
What does it mean to live with a chronic heart condition?
Day-to-day life with a chronic heart condition is about much more than increased risk of heart attack or stroke. Proper circulation of blood is essential to every part of our overall health, meaning that any issues in the heart may cause ripple effects throughout the body. From swelling in the legs to shortness of breath to persistent fatigue, heart disease can present symptoms that can be difficult to diagnose. And when the condition is rare, diagnosis and treatment become even more challenging.
For much of Dr. Andrew Darlington’s career, he saw patients suffering from ATTR-CM — complaining of shortness of breath and chronic fatigue — and found himself with limited options to treat the underlying disease. As his patients’ health declined, they would find themselves in and out of the hospital, losing not only their health but their quality of life. Often, the condition would progress until they succumbed to the disease.
“From diagnosis to death, it could be as short as two to three years,” said Darlington, a heart failure cardiologist with Piedmont Heart Institute in Atlanta. “We were desperately in need of options.”
Over the last decade, those options have arrived. Although ATTR-CM remains incurable, Darlington said that over the last ten years an “explosion of innovation” has changed how medical providers can approach this disease.
