Heart Failure Can Be Cured Now; Phase 1 Clinical Trial Of Cimaglermin Drug Successful

After decades of relentless research, scientists have finally developed a drug that restores normal cardiac functions in patients who have already suffered heart failure. The drug named Cimaglermin is presently under clinical trials.

According to the latest research, the drug was highly effective in repairing the damaged heart cells and improving normal heart functioning. It was found that a single intravenous infusion of the drug was able to improve and restore heart functions for at least three months. Toxicity reports suggested that the drug is safe and nontoxic even in high doses.

According to UPI, the scientists who developed the drug are thrilled about the results and are looking forward to the results of phase 2 and phase 3 level trials. Dr. Daniel Lenihan, the lead researcher of the project and director, Vanderbilt University's Heart Clinical Research Program, Nashville, said, "Right now we have many therapies that we use for heart failure, and these patients [in the study] were on all of those therapies and still had significant heart dysfunction."

He also added that various combinations of drugs including blood pressure medicines and diuretics, which help in the removal of the excess fluid accumulated in the heart as a result of the improper pumping action, have not been able to reduce the number of fatalities that follow heart failure. Even with all these options, the death rate among these patients is "unacceptably high," Dr. Lenihan said.

According to an article published by i4U News, the Cimaglermin drug functions as a growth stimulator for the heart muscles, which helps in repairing the damaged portion of the heart. Studies reveal that the drug binds to the HER2 and HER4 receptors present on the surface of heart cells, which initiates a cascade of cellular signaling pathways responsible for the repair and survival of the heart cells, Dr. Lenihan further said.

He also further added that, "This drug, although still in an experimental phase, might be an important way to improve heart function in patients with heart failure."