The Associated Press
　　F L O R E N C E, Italy, Sept. 3 "An experimental drug could make breathing much easier for millions of people suffering from “smoker’s lung,"new research suggests.
　　
　　In tests involving 500 people who had suffered from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease for more than a decade, the drug appeared to be safer and better at improving breathing and at reducing infections and hospital visits than the best current treatment, researchers said. They were addressing scientists at the World Congress on Lung Health, which concluded Saturday.

On Market in 2002?
　　 The inhaled drug, Spiriva, could be available as soon as 2002. And if it turns out to be as good as it looks right now, it could improve the quality of life for nearly half of the 600 million people with the disease, said Dr. Bartolome Celli. Celli is chief of pulmonary and critical care at St. Elizabeth’s Hospital in Boston and a leading authority on the illness.
　　
　　While the drug probably will not slow the deterioration of the lungs, many sufferers could see their overall well-being improve by between 30 and 50 percent, said Celli, who was not involved in the research.
　　
　　“The overall effect is something that almost has never been seen,"said Dr. Romain Pauwels, a professor of medicine at the University of Ghent in Belgium who conducted some of the research. “Compared to what we have now, this is far better, no matter what parameter you’re measuring."br /> 　　
　　Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, known as COPD or “smoker’s lung,"is an irreversible progressive illness caused by narrowing of the airways. It encompasses emphysema and chronic bronchitis.

　　Deadly Results
　　About 3 million people worldwide die from it every year, the World Health Organization estimates. About 15 million Americans have it, and about 100,000 of them die each year, according to the American Lung Association.
　　
　　Many people who suffer from moderate or severe smoker’s lung complain of breathlessness so serious that they have to stop when getting washed or dressed, they walk more slowly than others their age and they cannot leave their homes to go shopping. The new drug relieved those symptoms and also let sufferers perform simple activities like bending over without becoming short of breath, said Dr. Paul Jones, a professor of respiratory medicine at St. George’s Hospital Medical School in London.
　　
　　“That’s a very important thing,"said Jones, who did not conduct any of the research but designed the well-being standards measured in the studies. “People laugh and snigger about getting breathless bending over, but bending over is very important for many activities—picking up things, putting on your socks—and it’s a major problem for patients with COPD. Most of them complain about it."br /> 　　
　　The new drug relaxes the muscles tightening the airways. It is related to the commonly prescribed inhaled medication Atrovent, but it targets the symptoms better and lasts longer, scientists say.
　　
　　Another advantage is that the longer-acting drug, whose chemical name is tiotropium, is inhaled once a day. Atrovent, or ipratropium, has to be inhaled four times a day, and many patients simply don’t take it as often as they should, Celli said.

　　‘Significant Step"br /> 　　Both drugs are made by Germany’s Boehringer Ingelheim. The company hosted a conference session at which two studies comparing the drugs were presented.
　　
　　“There is no doubt it is a significant step forward,"Jones said.

“Tiotropium caused an improvement in their health and that was maintained with very little evidence of deterioration over the next year,"he said. “That’s a really exciting, and an unexpected, finding. Those taking the short-acting drug were clearly getting worse after the first three months of treatment."/p>

Even with the best treatment available, life is quite hard for the type of patients in the studies—those who have moderate or severe COPD, Jones said.

“In this study, 20 percent of the patients were housebound because of their breathlessness, and that is pretty typical for the type of patient in whom we’d be using this class of drug,"he said.

Boehringer Ingelheim said it plans to apply for European approval for the drug by the end of this year and for U.S. approval a year later. If accepted, it could be available by 2002.

(From ABCNEWS.com)