Surfing the MASH Tsunami

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This week on Surfing the NASH Tsunami, we are offering a co-host ‘roundtable’ catch-up between Jörn Schattenberg, Louise Campbell and Roger Green. This is a fun, casual conversation that looks into first quarter highlights and a preview of what’s to come in quarter two of 2023.

Roger opens this final conversation by noting his growing enthusiasm for International NASH Day 2023. This leads Jörn to share interesting anecdotes to describe how different cultures face different health threats. For example, in Germany he questions whether he should be revisiting his position on recommendations around alcohol consumption. As the session winds down, Roger alludes to exciting plans for a Surfing NASH 3rd anniversary special. The recording will take place on April 17th and we kindly invite those who are interested to participate as a live audience. For a final question, the Surfers visit what each thinks will be big ticket items for the second half of 2023 in the liver space. Louise looks to more education to bolster early detection. Jörn extends this thought to include the need for a clinical trial showing superiority of screening versus no screening in the general population. Lastly, Roger speaks to his contrasting interests around both the power of AI-assisted assessment of biopsy and the ability of consortia to demonstrate the effectiveness of NITs.

If you enjoy the episode, have questions or interest around its contents and Fatty Liver disease, we kindly ask that you submit reviews wherever you download our discussions. Alternatively, you can write to us directly at [email protected].


Stay Safe and Surf On!

Send us Fan Mail

This week on Surfing the NASH Tsunami, we are offering a co-host ‘roundtable’ catch-up between Jörn Schattenberg, Louise Campbell and Roger Green. This is a fun, casual conversation that looks into first quarter highlights and a preview of what’s to come in quarter two of 2023.

Roger begins this session by describing some of his anticipations around drug development in the second quarter, specifically pointing to emerging news on OCA and resmetirom. He also notes the possibility of new Phase 3 press releases on the horizon. Louise comments that with expected drug approvals, there needs to be more emphasis around allied health education, training and pathways. This leads Roger to share his belief that an approval in the US will lead to rather aggressive allied health education.

If you enjoy the episode, have questions or interest around its contents and Fatty Liver disease, we kindly ask that you submit reviews wherever you download our discussions. Alternatively, you can write to us directly at [email protected].
 

Stay Safe and Surf On!

Send us Fan Mail

This week on Surfing the NASH Tsunami, we are offering a co-host ‘roundtable’ catch-up between Jörn Schattenberg, Louise Campbell and Roger Green. This is a fun, casual conversation that looks into first quarter highlights and a preview of what’s to come in quarter two of 2023.

In this conversation, each Surfer picks one thing that's anticipated to happen in the second quarter that they think is likely to be most momentous or compelling. Louise leads with comments around the rigorous approval process of NICE for primary care access to FibroScan in the UK. While extensive, these protocols produce world-leading cost-benefit analysis. The group goes on to discuss how different systems contribute to progress in the field through different qualities. Louise asserts that facilitating frontline screening will enable early detection and ultimately help prevent cirrhosis for many patients. As the conversation winds down, Jörn offers notes on the upcoming EASL Congress and Roger shares his latest metaphor to describe the dynamism of fighting fatty liver disease. 

If you enjoy the episode, have questions or interest around its contents and Fatty Liver disease, we kindly ask that you submit reviews wherever you download our discussions. Alternatively, you can write to us directly at [email protected].


Stay Safe and Surf On!

Send us Fan Mail

This week on Surfing the NASH Tsunami, we are offering a co-host ‘roundtable’ catch-up between Jörn Schattenberg, Louise Campbell and Roger Green. This is a fun, casual conversation that looks into first quarter highlights and a preview of what’s to come in quarter two of 2023.

In this conversation, Jörn recounts highlights from attending the 3rd Annual Liver Connect Conference organized by the Chronic Liver Disease Foundation. He enjoyed this meeting which encompassed the “latest and hottest on development” and being present for a powerful presentation by Scott Friedman. Scott shared interesting new concepts around ‘hot versus cold’ fibrosis states and how these influence drug development and the way we think of liver science. Roger points out that combination therapy may be the course of action when dealing with inflammation and fibrosis simultaneously.

If you enjoy the episode, have questions or interest around its contents and Fatty Liver disease, we kindly ask that you submit reviews wherever you download our discussions. Alternatively, you can write to us directly at [email protected].

Stay Safe and Surf On!

Send us Fan Mail

This week on Surfing the NASH Tsunami, we are offering a co-host ‘roundtable’ catch-up between Jörn Schattenberg, Louise Campbell and Roger Green. This is a fun, casual conversation that looks into first quarter highlights and a preview of what’s to come in quarter two of 2023. 

• Jörn recounts a productive trip to California where he attended the 3rd Annual Liver Connect Conference organized by the Chronic Liver Disease Foundation. He shares his highlights from the meeting, including a summary of a powerful presentation by Scott Friedman on ‘hot’ versus ‘cold’ fibrosis, cirrhosis, combination therapies and more. 
  
  
  
• Louise speaks to the intensity involved in reviewing publication for FibroScan approval in primary care pathways in the UK. One benefit of the lengthy protocols that NICE considers is that it ultimately produces world-leading cost-benefit analysis. The group goes on to discuss how different systems contribute to the field through their different strengths. 
  
  
  
• Roger uncovers a new metaphor for describing fatty liver disease and announces exciting plans for the podcast’s 3rd anniversary special.
   
  
  
• Among a number of other insights emerging from this session, the Surfers also discuss what is happening in the space of drug development and impending approvals, the strength in allied health professionals and primary care pathways for fighting fatty liver.

If you enjoy the episode, have questions or interest around its contents and Fatty Liver disease, we kindly ask that you submit reviews wherever you download our discussions. Alternatively, you can write to us directly at [email protected].


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This episode From the Vault comes from the Surfing NASH  coverage of the inaugural INCBCN Workshop, with Jörn Schattenberg serving as event co-founder and Louise Campbell and Roger Green moderating sessions. This episode is less a formal recap of the meeting than recollections of key moments and messages from the co-founders and Surfers.

This conversation wraps up the Surfers’ discussion of the conference. The co-hosts start with comments about pharma partners’ and patient advocates’ favorable reactions to the meeting and review many of the individual presentations. Louise shifts the focus of the conversation to the role of liver in overall metabolic wellness. Jörn notes that hepatologists are less likely to focus on liver fat as compared to fibrosis, and agrees that a broader focus on liver fat is important in the overall issue of metabolic health. The conversation ends with the group considering actions that might strengthen a successful 2022 conference when it recurs in 2023.

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Surfing NASH returns to preview the second Innovations in NAFLD Care Workshop (INCBCN) to be held in Barcelona from 26-27 May, 2023. Conference founders and directors Jeff Lazarus and Jörn Schattenberg discuss what makes the event unique with Louise Campbell and Roger Green.

In this final conversation, Roger asks what sort of impact the Workshop will have. Specifically, he wonders what indicators in the next six months would be the signal of success. Jeff notes that last year’s meeting resulted in the publishing of an article in Nature’s new Open Access journal, Communications Medicine. Envisioning how the meeting plays out this year, Jeff believes it would be a great sign in November to have people asking to return and lining up funding for 2024. Roger next asks how an intimate meeting of this size will translate an impact into the broader population. Jeff suggests that by having KOLs in attendance, they can take the experience back to their practices and share findings with colleagues. He emphasizes his hope that the impact will make its way out and that this is a meeting oriented to making change and not just publishing another abstract. “This is really about top line presentations coupled with exciting, engaged discussions.”

For the final question, Roger asks how the agenda will impact the next 12 months and what will grow to be a bigger focus for 2024. Surf on to find out.

If you enjoy the episode, have questions or interest around its contents and Fatty Liver disease, we kindly ask that you submit reviews wherever you download our discussions. Alternatively, you can write to us directly at [email protected].

Stay Safe and Surf On!

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Surfing NASH returns to preview the second Innovations in NAFLD Care Workshop (INCBCN) to be held in Barcelona from 26-27 May, 2023. Conference founders and directors Jeff Lazarus and Jörn Schattenberg discuss what makes the event unique with Louise Campbell and Roger Green.

Roger opens with a question around the involvement of non-physicians at the Workshop. Jeff again notes the presentations by esteemed nutritionist, Shira Zelber-Sagi, and epidemiologist, Harriet Rumgay. He also highlights patient organizations that have been reached out to for participation in a roundtable. Lastly, he says feedback will be welcomed to help strengthen the future of the program and its direction. Louise then shares her thoughts on participating in last year’s panel and injecting the strength of nursing perspectives.

From here, Roger asks what the panelists anticipate in the meeting that has yet to be covered. Jeff underscores the importance of facilitating interactive sessions that prompt engaged discussion and plenty of questions. Jörn states that this is not a lecture on drugs and basic science, but an opportunity to harness developments and empower practitioners and patients alike with energized talk around how to use it.

If you enjoy the episode, have questions or interest around its contents and Fatty Liver disease, we kindly ask that you submit reviews wherever you download our discussions. Alternatively, you can write to us directly at [email protected].

Stay Safe and Surf On!

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Surfing NASH returns to preview the second Innovations in NAFLD Care Workshop (INCBCN) to be held in Barcelona from 26-27 May, 2023. Conference founders and directors Jeff Lazarus and Jörn Schattenberg discuss what makes the event unique with Louise Campbell and Roger Green. This conversation picks up with concluding comments around Day 1 in Barcelona. Jeff elaborates on a Patient Organisation session that closes with a roundtable discussion. For this discussion, Juan Mendive of the World Organization of Family Doctors will discuss primary care perspectives.

Moving into Day 2, Jeff shares that friends of the podcast Alina Allen and Mazen Noureddin will be opening with two exciting topics. Alina will be giving a presentation titled Automation, Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning for Patient Identification and Risk Stratification. Following, Mazen will be detailing How to Overcome Barriers of Implementation - Bridging the Gap Between Science and Current Care Pathways. This opening session is chaired by Maru Rinella. Following is an industry session which will see a discussion featuring Peter Rydqvist (Madrigal Pharmaceuticals, Sweden) and Jeppe Zacho (Novo Nordisk, Denmark). Later and as part of a treatment and care session there will be an entertaining debate on whether being vegetarian offers a cure for NAFLD (led by Shira Zelber-Sagi and Camilla Dalby Hansen). This session also features a presentation by Stephen Harrison titled Medical Therapy in the Near Future. Stephen will also be joining Jeff in the final session to discuss Steven health equity in Fatty Liver disease and addressing disparities. Joining this session will be Zobair Younossi to discuss payer perspectives, Juan Pericàs on socioeconomics and Patrizia Carrieri on risks and interventions for women with NAFLD.

If you enjoy the episode, have questions or interest around its contents and Fatty Liver disease, we kindly ask that you submit reviews wherever you download our discussions. Alternatively, you can write to us directly at [email protected].

Stay Safe and Surf On!

Send us Fan Mail

Surfing NASH returns to preview the second Innovations in NAFLD Care Workshop (INCBCN) to be held in Barcelona from 26-27 May, 2023. Conference founders and directors Jeff Lazarus and Jörn Schattenberg discuss what makes the event unique with Louise Campbell and Roger Green.

Jörn begins this conversation by noting the diverse, cross-disciplinary involvement of the event. He also shares details of an abstract he will be presenting on liver stiffness. Roger then returns to the idea of linking Fatty Liver and cancers. He recalls last week’s episode when Hannah Mamuszka noted the alarming degree to which all obesogenic cancers are related to Fatty Liver disease. Jeff notes the roundness of Day 1, citing the benefit of hosting a holistic discussion which features viewpoints on alcohol, diabetes and cancer. Jörn adds that by looking at the liver, we are empowering the patients and educating on their individual risk, ultimately informing in terms of cancer prevention. At this point, Louise expands on the importance of early screening in populations who are unaware of their liver health and the need to drive education for those at risk to know when and what to ask their providers. She notes the nonlinear progression to liver cancer, a recently recurring theme on the podcast. She then goes on to commend the convergence of fields, citing the various associations’ (including the American Heart Association and American Diabetes Association) growing inclusion of Fatty Liver in recommendations around risk assessment.

Roger connects the idea that endocrinologists are working in terms of cancer prevention. He reasons that if 70% of their patients have NAFLD, and if NAFLD elevates the risk of HCC, then “every time you treat a diabetic patient, you need to think about what you're doing in the context of avoiding cancer.” As the conversation winds down, Jörn mentions a pre-event on the opening morning called the NASH NITs Real World Evidence Summit, which lends to a more hands-on training around which biomarkers to use and implementation. Here, he explains, the experience aims to familiarize those who don't work with these tests everyday to gain the skills and confidence to effectively screen for Fatty Liver diseases.

If you enjoy the episode, have questions or interest around its contents and Fatty Liver disease, we kindly ask that you submit reviews wherever you download our discussions. Alternatively, you can write to us directly at [email protected].

Stay Safe and Surf On!