The 7th International Leh Symposium: Lungs at High Altitude: Molecular Mechanisms and Therapeutics of Hypoxic Lung

Delta-like ligand 4 (DLL-4) inhibitor drugs are an emerging cancer treatment. In clinical trials for solid organ malignancies, intravenous administration of monoclonal antibodies that inhibit DLL-4 is associated with development of pulmonary hypertension, in the absence of left ventricular dysfunction. Analysis of 13 clinical trials showed that pulmonary hypertension is a complication of DLL-4 inhibition.

Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is a complex cardiovascular disorder characterized by elevated mean pulmonary artery pressure >20 mmHg at rest. PH is classified into five groups based on etiology, each with unique underlying causes and pathophysiological mechanisms: pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), PH due to left heart disease, PH due to lung disease or hypoxia, chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH), and PH with unclear multifactorial mechanisms.

The PEGASUS study is the first multicentric and prospective assessment of the safety of air travel flying in pulmonary hypertension (PH) (NCT03051763). Data of air travel from 60 patients with PH was available. 

Pulmonary hypertension in sickle cell disease (SCD) is a complex phenomenon resulting from multiple overlapping etiologies, including pulmonary vasoconstriction in the setting of chronic hemolytic...