It's a Lung Story: Aging and Cystic Fibrosis

What if the future you spent your entire life preparing not to have suddenly became possible? In this episode, Ahmet Uluer, DO, MPH, Lauren Harvey, and Andrea Gavin Becker welcome journalist, war correspondent, and author Will Cathcart, who lives with cystic fibrosis, to discuss his debut novel, This Is How People Die—a literary thriller that blends espionage, romance, and cystic fibrosis into an...

In this episode, Ahmet Uluer, DO, MPH, Andrea Gavin Becker, and Lauren Harvey explore one of the most talked-about emerging therapies in cystic fibrosis care: bacteriophage therapy. They’re joined by Steffanie Strathdee, PhD, infectious disease epidemiologist, co-founder of UC San Diego’s Center for Innovative Phage Applications and Therapeutics, and co-author of the memoir “The Perfect Predator”—...

In this episode, we talk with Karen von Berg, a physical therapist at Johns Hopkins who’s spent her career helping people with cystic fibrosis navigate movement, function, and the realities of living in their bodies over time. We go beyond what most people might expect from physical therapy, diving into posture, breathing mechanics, and our favorite, exercise as snacks (really!). We also talk abou...

In this episode, we talk with science journalist Bijal Trivedi, author of “Breath from Salt,” the definitive and surprisingly human account of how families, scientists, and clinicians helped transform cystic fibrosis (CF) from a fatal childhood disease into one of the greatest success stories in modern medicine. Joining the conversation is Kate O’Donnell, president of the Joey Fund and sister of J...

Most people with cystic fibrosis (CF) know their lungs better than anyone. But what happens when living longer means needing care that reaches beyond the lungs? In this episode, our very own Ahmet Uluer, DO, MPH—co-founder of the CFRI Patrick Nash Fellows Program—joins Carolyn Nash to share the story behind the national initiative designed to prepare subspecialists to care for adults growing older...

Pain is one of the most common experiences in cystic fibrosis—and also one of the most under-discussed. In this episode, Ahmet Uluer, DO, MPH, and Andrea Gavin Becker are joined by Elisabeth (Liz) Dellon, MD, MPH, a pulmonologist and palliative care physician who helped lead the CF Foundation’s pain management guidelines, to explore why pain so often goes unrecognized, under-treated, or minimized...

In the season finale of “It’s a Lung Story”, Ahmet Uluer, DO, MPH, Lauren Harvey, and Andrea Gavin Becker return to the studio for a deeply honest conversation about caregiving in cystic fibrosis—what it demands, what it gives back, and what often goes unseen. They’re joined by two caregivers: Pam Richards, mother to an adult daughter living with CF, and Shannon Mortimer, a CF spouse. Pam and Shan...

For many couples in the cystic fibrosis community, building a family means facing infertility—and deciding how to move forward when biology makes things harder, yet again. In this episode, Ahmet Uluer, DO, MPH, Lauren Harvey and Andrea Gavin Becker dive in with Darcy Esiason—CF spouse, mom of two, therapist, and director of the Boomer Esiason Foundation’s IVF Grant Program. We talk about choosing...

Most people with CF know their lungs better than anyone. But the liver? It’s rarely front and center. In this episode, Ahmet Uluer, DO, MPH, Lauren Harvey and Andrea Gavin Becker talk all things liver with Jay Freeman, MD, a hepatologist at Nationwide Children’s Hospital and a leader in the GI and liver complications of children and adults with cystic fibrosis. Joining that conversation is Sarah R...

In Part 2 of "CF Parenting Stories: 3 Voices, 3 Perspectives", Ahmet Uluer, DO, MPH, Andrea Gavin Becker, and Lauren Harvey sit down with returning guests Abi, Mike, and Morgan to discuss how parenting when you have cystic fibrosis evolves across stages of life. They talk about managing decline, building support, and the hard reality of not knowing how many healthy years you’ll get. There’s reflec...

As more people with cystic fibrosis have the chance to become parents (because for the first time, many are living long enough to consider it), Ahmet Uluer, DO, MPH, Lauren Harvey, and Andrea Gavin Becker are asking what that looks like. In "CF Parenting Stories: 3 Voices, 3 Perspectives" (Part 1), we talk with three parents with CF—Abi, Mike, and Morgan—each navigating a different version of fami...

People with CF are used to waiting for the other shoe to drop—but a cancer diagnosis? That one still lands with a thud. In this episode, Ahmet Uluer, DO, MPH, Lauren Harvey, and Andrea Gavin Becker, sit down with Steve Freedman. MD, PhD, and Chelsea Lau, MD to talk about something that’s been in medical literature for decades, but is still rarely discussed: cancer risk in CF. As more people with C...

In the second part of "CF Transplant Stories: 3 Women’s Voices", the conversation shifts to a more open, deconstructed rhythm with collective reflection. Ahmet Uluer, MD, MPH, Lauren Harvey and Andrea Gavin Becker continue their talks with Tara, Beth, and Caleigh about what it takes to get listed, find a center that will say yes, and stay alive through red tape, denials, and decisions no one train...

You asked for an episode on lung transplants—so we made two . In the first half of "CF Transplant Stories: 3 Women’s Voices", Ahmet Uluer, MD, MPH, Lauren Harvey, and Andrea Gavin Becker talk with three women from the cystic fibrosis (CF) community—Tara, Beth and Caleigh—about what it means to make the choice to pursue a lung transplant—sometimes more than once. They share what it’s like to be den...

This month, Ahmet Uluer, MD, MPH, Lauren Harvey, and Andrea Gavin Becker discuss something often overlooked in cystic fibrosis (CF) care: hearing loss. We are joined by Angie Garinis, PhD: an audiologist, researcher, and expert in hearing and balance disorders—especially when caused by medications like aminoglycoside antibiotics (specifically tobramycin) commonly used to treat lung infections in C...

In Part 2 of "Salty and Sexy", Ahmet Uluer, MD, MPH, Lauren Harvey, and Andrea Gavin Becker go further into how growing old with cystic fibrosis intersects with reproductive and sexual health. Raksha Jain, MD, and Traci Kazmerski, MD, MS, are back to talk about the realities of perimenopause and menopause in CF—including hormone therapy, bone density, and the growing need for cancer screenings. Th...

Sexual and reproductive health isn’t always talked about in CF clinic—but we think it should be part of normal clinic discourse. In episode three of It’s a Lung Story, Ahmet Uluer, MD, MS, Lauren Harvey, and Andrea Gavin Becker are joined by two incredible guests; pulmonologists Raksha Jain, MD and Traci Kazmerski, MD, MS, national leaders in CF sexual health research and absolute pros at keeping...

In this episode of It’s a Lung Story, Ahmet Uluer, MD, MPH, Lauren Harvey, and Andrea Gavin Becker dive into the complex relationship between mental health and cystic fibrosis. Anna Georgiopoulos, MD, a psychiatrist at Mass General Brigham and an expert in CF mental health, joins the team to explore how medical advancements have transformed physical health without always improving mental well-bein...

Managing cystic fibrosis is tough—but adding cystic fibrosis-related diabetes (CFRD) to the mix? That’s next level. Not everyone with CF develops CFRD so why does it happen? And what are the emotional and mental tolls of a second diagnosis? Ahmet Uluer, MD, MPH, Lauren Harvey, and Andrea Gavin Becker ask the questions you want answers to. On the inaugural episode of It's a Lung Story, Melissa Putn...

Welcome to the launch trailer for It's a Lung Story! In this podcast, Dr. Ahmet Uluer, Lauren Harvey, and Andrea Gavin Becker explore the realities of aging with cystic fibrosis (CF) in the era of modulators and medical advancements. Through expert interviews, personal narratives, and compelling storytelling, we get into real conversations about both the challenges and the resilience of the CF com...