A team of international experts is developing a pioneering tool to help tailor the treatment of asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) as part of a new European Union (EU) project.

The Airway Disease PRedicting Outcomes through Patient Specific Computational Modelling (AirPROM) research team, based at the University of Oxford (United Kingdom), involves scientists from over 10 European countries, who intend to design a computed model of the cells in an airway and a physical model of the airways to assess how air flows through the lungs, and why it becomes obstructed in people with asthma and COPD. By using these unique models, along with existing data from tests which measure lung capacity and highly detailed computerized tomography (CT) scans, the scientists will be able test new therapies, which will enable them to tailor treatments towards the individual.

The aim is to use this information to generate an extensive database of computed and physical models of the whole airways system that will be able to link the characteristics of different airways to a particular treatment in the future, helping health professionals provide personalized treatment for people with COPD and asthma. Another benefit could be to predict how patients might react to different treatments, how the diseases will progress, and the effect on the airways, and to help monitor the future risk to patients.

“Current treatments for COPD and asthma adopt a 'one size fits all' approach,” said project leader Prof. Chris Brightling, MD, MBBS, of the University of Leicester (United Kingdom). “People with these respiratory diseases are therefore missing out on the right treatment to help them manage their condition. These patient-specific models will help us monitor the diseases and how they progress, to make current treatments much more specific and targeted to benefit COPD and asthma patients.”

“Our ability to create a model of the lung using CT scans and other data has advanced greatly along with our ability to measure genes and their activity,” added professor Brightling. “We are also at a point in time where computational models have advanced to the point where they can be used to make sense of thousands of measurements. Now is the time to bring all these elements together to change the way we diagnose patients.”

Guangzhou Jia Yu medical equipment Limited