ERS 2025 Highlights Podcast

In this episode, Medicom’s correspondent covers 6 presentations from the annual meeting of the European Respiratory Society (ERS 2025), held in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, from 27 September – 1 October 2025. 

The topics discussed are: 

1. Sotatercept is becoming a treatment option for patients with newly diagnosed pulmonary arterial hypertension 

00.33 Sotatercept versus placebo showed a reduction in clinical deterioration in patients with newly diagnosed pulmonary arterial hypertension. However, this was associated with an increased incidence of bleeding events. 

      2. Astegolimab shows promise as a potential treatment for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease 

02.29 Astegolimab versus placebo showed an improvement in exacerbation rates, accompanied by a slight increase in infections, in patients with moderate-to-severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. 

      3. Are patients with pulmonary sarcoidosis overtreated with corticosteroids? 

04.30 Efzofitimod did not lead to a significant improvement in background corticosteroid use compared with placebo in patients with pulmonary sarcoidosis; however, it raised the possibility that many patients may be overtreated with corticosteroids, according to results from the largest trial in sarcoidosis ever reported. 

      4. Durvalumab in combination with chemotherapy shows promise for patients with SCLC and poor performance status 

06.12 Durvalumab combined with chemotherapy demonstrated acceptable toxicity and tolerability, with an initial survival benefit observed in patients with extensive-stage small cell lung cancer with poor performance status. 

      5. Inhaled heparin improves outcomes in non-intubated COVID-19 patients 

07.59 Inhaled unfractionated heparin significantly lowered the risk of intubation and death among hospitalised COVID-19 patients who did not require mechanical ventilation at baseline. 

       6. Early data suggest a potential benefit of taladegib in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis 

09.47 The Hedgehog inhibitor taladegib, compared with placebo, led to a significant improvement in forced vital capacity and other measures of lung fibrosis, while also increasing the rates of dysgeusia and muscle spasms in patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. 

Enjoy listening! 

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Posted on 28 October 2025