Valacyclovir in the Treatment of Idipathic Pulmonary Fibrosis: IRB Protocol

IPF is an interstitial lung disease of unknown etiology characterized by a progressive course, a poor prognosis with a median survival of approximately three years, and a lack of evidence that any treatment prolongs survival. While the pathogenesis of IPF is still unclear, increasing evidence points to an unidentified stimulus resulting in repetitive focal injury of alveolar epithelial cells and an aberrant wound repair response characterized by fibroblastic proliferation. This fibroproliferative response, in turn, results in a progressively restrictive lung physiology which produces the symptoms of the disease.