Scleroderma can be unpredictable, so I'd rather be informed and take action by Tomisa Starr | July 16, 2025

​I had a chest CT scan in April 2024, and then another one last March. I’m experiencing a bit of anxiety and uncertainty about the most recent scan.

There are some things about having a rare chronic illness like scleroderma that I just can’t control. This frustrates me because I like to feel like I’m in control of things. When I’m not, it makes me stressed and anxious.

People with scleroderma have an increased risk of cancer. My chest CT scan last year showed an 8-mm spiculated nodule in one of my lungs. My recent scan showed that the nodule had apparently shrunk to 7 mm. I didn’t know what having this lung nodule might mean, so I needed to know more. I was concerned that it might have a connection to cancer.
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Even though I know some things about how scleroderma affects me, I still don’t think I have all the answers. Since scleroderma is a complex disease involving multiple bodily systems, it affects everyone differently. Knowledge is power, because you never know when a seemingly small thing might lead to a bigger issue, like cancer, for example.

Study found differing survival rates for each subgroup by Steve Bryson, PhD | July 8, 2025

Scientists in China have identified four distinct subtypes of systemic sclerosis-associated interstitial lung disease (SSc-ILD), each characterized by different clinical characteristics, a new study found.

With these four subtypes identified, the team then analyzed outcomes for each subtype and found differing survival rates and factors associated with mortality, which may help better predict and improve patient outcomes, according to researchers.

The new study, “A noval identification of 4 systemic sclerosis – interstitial lung disease subgroups using principal component analysis-based cluster analysis,” was published in BMC Pulmonary Medicine.

Five key clinical and imaging variables identified
In SSc, also known as scleroderma, scar tissue builds up in the skin and internal organs. The lungs are particularly vulnerable, which can lead to interstitial lung disease, or ILD. This disorder is marked by damage to the tissue around the tiny air sacs in the lungs, or alveoli, making breathing difficult.

Lung function tests, clinical exams, and CT scans are established ways to assess SSc-ILD, but they often fail to capture the disease’s variability among patients, the researchers noted. Surgical lung biopsy, which is regarded as the gold standard for ILD classification, is rarely performed in SSc-ILD patients due to the associated risks of complications.

To learn more, a research team in China conducted a cluster analysis using a combination of clinical variables and imaging results to identify subgroups of SSc-ILD patients with similar clinical characteristics. This may allow clinicians to tailor treatments to each patient’s disease manifestations, according to the team.

The researchers retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 103 adults with SSc-ILD, most of whom were women (84%). Nearly all (97.1%) had skin manifestations and tested positive for antinuclear antibodies (96.1%), the self-reactive antibodies (autoantibodies) commonly found in SSc that react against components of the cell’s nucleus. CT scans revealed extensive lung involvement in most patients.

The team extracted five key clinical and imaging variables from patient records. Blood test variables were white blood cell count, the levels of the self-reactive antibody anti-SCL-70, and the C-reactive protein-to-albumin ratio, an inflammation-based marker for mortality. The imaging variable was ILD features based on CT scans. The fifth variable was the Warrick score, a standard measure of the severity of lung involvement, with scores of 15 or more indicating severe lung disease.

Therapy for skin conditions aims to ease inflammation, scarring in scleroderma by Margarida Maia, PhD | July 1, 2025

Galderma is launching a Phase 2 clinical trial to test nemolizumab, an antibody the company is developing to ease inflammation and scarring, known medically as fibrosis, in systemic sclerosis (SSc).

Recruitment is planned to begin in North America, South America, and Europe in the second half of this year, with trial completion anticipated in 2028, according to a company press release.

The goal, per Galderma, is to test the therapy’s safety and early efficacy in adults with SSc. Participants will be randomly assigned to receive either the antibody or a placebo.

The researchers also will look at pharmacokinetics, or how nemolizumab moves into, through, and out of the body, as well as pharmacodynamics — the treatment’s effects in the body.

The company is also launching a separate Phase 2 clinical trial of nemolizumab for chronic pruritus of unknown origin, or CPUO, a skin condition characterized by persistent itching lasting longer than six weeks. CPUO has no known cause and no approved treatments.
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“Investigating nemolizumab in two new trials … underscores our commitment to addressing skin conditions with high unmet needs,” said Baldo Scassellati Sforzolini, MD, PhD, Galderma’s global head of research and development. “These trials may help us better understand these complex diseases and offer hope for patients seeking relief from these severe and potentially life-threatening conditions.”