Health
Lingering lung disorders 5 years post-COVID: Here's what to know
The COVID-19 pandemic engulfed the U.S. five years ago this month, leaving not only lingering mental health effects but also long-term physical symptoms.
One of those included a condition known as post-COVID pulmonary fibrosis, which involves scarring of the lungs that can worsen over time and may require a lung transplant, according to pulmonologists.
Early infection caused extensive inflammation in many different body systems, noted Dr. Scott Scheinin, MD, director of lung transplantation for Mount Sinai Health System in New York City.
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“Once they cleared that infection, a lot of people were left with some amount of lung tissue being destroyed,” Scheinin told Fox News Digital during an interview.
Post-COVID pulmonary fibrosis involves scarring of the lungs that can worsen over time and may require a lung transplant. (iStock)
Scheinin provided medical care on the frontlines in New York City in the first wave of the pandemic.
“The early COVID experience in New York was the worst thing I’ve ever experienced in my life. It was just horrible,” he recalled.
One patient’s story
One of Scheinin’s patients was a pastor in his mid-50s who was infected with COVID-19 in March 2020.
Pastor Benjamin Thomas of East Meadow, Long Island, spent nearly 100 days in the hospital — 54 of which were on a ventilator — and six weeks in a medically induced coma.
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He was discharged in July 2020 with an oxygen tank. Despite overcoming the initial infection, Thomas’ condition deteriorated.
In 2022, the pastor noticed that his daily activity tolerance diminished dramatically and he required more oxygen for simple tasks.
The inflammatory response sparked by early mutations of the novel coronavirus led to scarring of lungs in many individuals. (iStock)
“I couldn’t take a shower for more than 30 seconds without being on oxygen,” he told Fox News Digital in an interview.
Scheinin said the pastor had no underlying conditions before contracting COVID. A lung biopsy showed that Thomas’ symptoms were consistent with post-inflammatory pulmonary fibrosis due to the COVID-19 infection.
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Thomas’ story was remarkable in that he survived the first bout with COVID, but two years later, his lungs had deteriorated so badly from the scarring that he needed a double lung transplant, Scheinin shared.
After spending seven months on the wait list, Thomas opted to settle for one lung since that would be faster than waiting for two. His surgery was performed on Feb. 28, 2023.
“The flu and any other illness would be exacerbated because of the underlying scarring of the lung.”
Now, two years after his lung transplant, Thomas says he no longer needs oxygen supplementation and is back to performing his daily pastoral activities at his church in Queens Village, New York, albeit at a slower pace than before.
The pastor has returned to long-distance driving and can now walk for about 30 minutes. He attributes his successful recovery to the efforts of his Mount Sinai medical team, his faith and prayers from his congregation.
What is post-COVID fibrosis?
A healthy lung allows for the normal exchange of gases, such as oxygen and carbon dioxide, when one breathes air, Scheinin told Fox News Digital.
The inflammatory response sparked by early mutations of the novel coronavirus led to scarring of lungs in many individuals.
Testing for this condition is relatively non-invasive, typically including a cat scan or X-ray to check for structural lung damage, as well as blood tests and a pulmonary function test. (iStock)
In certain cases, the doctor said, the lungs no longer function as well as they did before the infection.
“The normal gas exchange is impeded because now you have areas of the lung tissue that are scarred, and therefore they’re not functioning normally,” he said.
“If it’s a small area, it may be insignificant and unnoticeable, but as more of the lung tissue becomes scarred, more of the normal lung function is destroyed, [and] the patient becomes short of breath.”
This could lead to future issues, especially if the patient is exposed to other respiratory ailments.
“The flu and any other illness would be exacerbated because of the underlying scarring of the lung,” Scheinin said. “I think it just makes the lungs more susceptible to injury.”
Symptoms, diagnosis and treatment
Symptoms of post-COVID pulmonary fibrosis can mimic other types of interstitial lung diseases, which are disorders that cause progressive scarring and inflammation of lung tissue.
If a person who previously had a COVID infection continues to experience shortness of breath, chronic cough and change in their exercise tolerance — or if they smoke or have an underlying condition such as emphysema — they should see their physician or a pulmonologist, according to Scheinin.
Risk factors for post-COVID pulmonary fibrosis typically include an underlying chronic condition, older age, and the use of mechanical ventilation during the acute phase of COVID. (iStock)
Testing for this condition is relatively non-invasive, typically including a cat scan or X-ray to check for structural lung damage, as well as blood tests and a pulmonary function test, the doctor told Fox News Digital.
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Not everyone infected with COVID will develop pulmonary fibrosis, and the condition can vary in severity and recovery, the lung specialist noted.
In some cases, a person may have been susceptible to developing lung fibrosis due to an underlying condition and the COVID-19 infection may accelerate the fibrotic progression.
It is important to get checked out by a medical professional if you have symptoms, a lung specialist said, especially shortness of breath. (iStock)
It is important to get checked out by a medical professional if you have symptoms, Scheinin said, especially shortness of breath.
Risk factors for post-COVID pulmonary fibrosis typically include an underlying chronic condition, older age, and the use of mechanical ventilation during the acute phase of COVID, according to previous studies.
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Researchers are investigating the use of antifibrotic medications to treat the condition, along with steroids and other anti-inflammatories that are currently used to treat other lung diseases.
Besides medications, treatment may also include pulmonary rehabilitation, exercise training and behavioral modifications, according to lung specialists.
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An accidental lab discovery has opened the door to entirely new ways of preventing the flu.
While investigating how influenza replicates, researchers discovered that different flu strains use completely different strategies to infiltrate human cells, SWNS reported.
By targeting the specific molecules the viruses rely on, scientists found that they could block them from entering new cells and halt their replication altogether.
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Researchers say these “fundamental insights” into seasonal influenza highlight a clear path toward developing better preventive medications.
“The hope is that fundamental, curiosity-based research like this helps to pave the way for novel strategies to treat and prevent influenza infections,” principal investigator Dr. Emily Bruce, from the University of Vermont’s Larner College of Medicine, said in the SWNS report.
While investigating how influenza replicates, researchers discovered that different flu strains use completely different strategies to infiltrate human cells. (iStock)
While several flu strains cause illness, H1N1 and H3N2 influenza A viruses are the most common. However, current flu tests cannot differentiate between them, and clinical treatments are identical for both.
Although vaccines and antivirals are available, Bruce noted a “dire” need for better medications to stop the virus from spreading cell to xxcell.
“You don’t get sick when a virus is in one cell,” he noted. “You get sick because a virus replicates itself and goes into many more cells.”
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The study, which was published in The Journal of Virology, originally aimed to map how viral RNA segments are transported within cells to create new viral particles.
The team used H1N1 and H3N2 viruses isolated from the nasal passages of positive patients in 2022.
Clinical treatments remain identical for both primary strains of the flu virus. (iStock)
During the investigation, the team unexpectedly stumbled upon a cellular pathway that blocked the virus from entering lung cells, SWNS reported.
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The data revealed that when a specific human protein called Rab11B was depleted, H3N2 viruses failed to enter human lung cells. H1N1 viruses were completely unaffected.
Using reverse genetics, the team mapped this defect and uncovered a brand-new, H3N2-specific role for Rab11B during viral entry.
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This discovery challenged the scientific assumption that all flu viruses enter cells the same way.
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“Viruses are like pirates from different countries hijacking someone’s ship,” Bruce said. “Different viruses, like different types of pirates, use different methods to get onboard.”
This discovery challenged the scientific assumption that all flu viruses enter cells the same way. (iStock)
“We had previously thought that all flu viruses used the same way to get into a cell, but we discovered that this is not true,” she went on. “H1N1 and H3N2 need different proteins to get in, and if you get rid of the right protein, a specific virus can’t get in.”
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While these findings identify a critical cellular pathway for viral entry, the study was conducted using isolated cells, the researchers acknowledged.
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Further research is needed to determine whether blocking the protein is safe and effective within a live, complex human respiratory system.
Bruce and the team hope to conduct further research to determine whether this Rab11B-dependency is a fundamental property of H3N2, or if it’s a trait unique to currently circulating flu strains.
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Eating processed meat like ham, sausage and bacon may be linked to a higher risk of certain types of cancer, according to new research.
While health organizations have already confirmed that processed meat can contribute to colon cancer, this study looked closer at cancers in the upper digestive tract, where the link has historically been less clear.
To understand these connections, researchers from the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC), one of the world’s largest long-term nutrition and cancer cohorts, tracked the health and diets of 450,112 people across Europe for an average of 14 years.
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The study group included 131,426 men and 318,686 women, according to the study’s press release.
During the follow-up period, 876 people developed stomach cancer and 215 people developed esophageal adenocarcinoma, which is cancer of the tube connecting the mouth to the stomach.
For female participants, eating both processed meat and white meat was linked to an increased risk of developing the disease. (iStock)
Researchers tracked where the stomach cancers grew, separating them into the upper part of the stomach near the throat and the lower part of the stomach.
The researchers also sorted the tumors into two categories based on how the cancer cells appeared under a microscope: intestinal, which forms more organized structures, and diffuse, in which the cells are more scattered throughout the tissue.
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After adjusting for other lifestyle factors, the researchers found that for every extra 30 grams of processed meat a person ate per day, their overall risk of stomach cancer went up by 9%. Eating that same extra 30 grams a day was also linked to a 13% higher risk of esophageal adenocarcinoma.
A standard single slice of regular deli-sliced ham or lunch meat averages around 28 grams, according to USDA data and nutritional tracking databases.
An extra 20 grams of white meat, such as chicken and turkey, was linked to a 12% higher risk of cancer in the main body of the stomach. (iStock)
An extra 20 grams of white meat, such as chicken or turkey, was linked to a 12% higher risk of cancer in the main body of the stomach, the researchers noted.
The study also revealed differences between men and women. For male participants, only processed meat showed a clear, statistically significant link to a higher risk of stomach cancer. For female participants, however, eating both processed meat and white meat was linked to an increased risk.
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These findings align with global health benchmarks, particularly those established by the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer.
The agency has long classified processed meat as a known human carcinogen, primarily due to its strong, well-documented links to colorectal cancer.
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However, health organizations have also consistently pointed to a potential, yet less definitive, relationship between these meats and cancers of the stomach.
Eating 30 grams of processed meat a day, or the equivalent to one slice of ham, was linked to a 13% higher risk of esophageal adenocarcinoma. (iStock)
Further scientific investigation is needed to confirm the findings and to account for other underlying risk factors, such as certain stomach infections, which could interact with dietary habits.
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A key limitation of the study is its reliance on self-reported diets, which can sometimes lead to inaccuracies in how participants recall their meat consumption over time, the researchers noted.
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The findings were published in the International Journal of Cancer.
Fox News Digital reached out to the researchers requesting comment.
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