Vim & Vigor - Spring 2021 - 4

4

1 in 13
children are
affected by
food allergies

Peanut Allergy

Breakthrough
FDA approves very first treatment
for this adverse food reaction
BY KELLY CASEY

F

ood allergies are a major public
health problem, affecting an
estimated 1 in 13 children in the
U.S.-about two in every classroom.
A food allergy is a medical condition
in which exposure to certain foods
triggers a harmful immune response
that can range from mild (itchiness,
hives) to severe or life-threatening
(difficulty breathing, throat tightening, anaphylaxis). Peanut allergy is
one of the most common types of
food allergies, affecting 2 percent to
3 percent of all children.

New Option for Children

The Latest in Research

UVA Health, a Food Allergy Discovery Center of
Distinction, provides access to new therapies undergoing
clinical trial. Discover more at uvahealth.com/food-allergies.

SPRING 2021 VIM & VIGOR

Takes Away the Worry

" Patients must still strictly avoid
peanuts and carry their epinephrine injector with them at all
times, " Dr. Hemler says. " However,
many families in the clinical
trials noted that the improvement
in their quality of life-by not
having to worry about a small
amount of peanut cross-contact
or contamination in foods at
school, day care, etc.-was a
game changer.
" This is an exciting time in
the food allergy field, " he continues,
" with Palforzia being the first of
hopefully many new treatments
for food allergy. "
Palforzia is not for everyone:
10 percent of patients in the clinical
trials developed a severe allergic
reaction, requiring use of injectable epinephrine, when taking this
therapy. More than 90 percent of
patients developed side effects,
mostly related to stomach upset
including nausea, vomiting and
diarrhea. The therapy also requires
frequent visits to the allergist's
office, about every two weeks, for
increasing the dose in a safe and
medically supervised environment.
Dr. Hemler and his multidisciplinary team value taking the time to
answer all questions a family might
have about this therapy or their
patient's food allergies in general. *

TOP PHOTO BY GETTY IMAGES

For many years, the only available
therapy was strictly avoiding the
food and carrying an epinephrine
autoinjector device everywhere you

went. That changed
Jonathan
last year.
Hemler, MD,
In January 2020,
head of UVA
the Food and Drug
Children's
Administration
Food Allergy
approved the very
Program
first treatment for
peanut allergy.
Palforzia, a peanut
allergen powder, is the first and
only oral immunotherapy treatment
approved to lessen allergic reactions, including anaphylaxis, that
may occur with accidental exposure
in patients with a confirmed diagnosis of peanut allergy.
" The goal of this therapy is to be
'bite-safe,' meaning a child taking
the medicine would be protected
from an accidental ingestion of

a peanut-containing food, " notes
Jonathan Hemler, MD, who
leads the UVA Children's Food
Allergy Program.
http://www.uvahealth.com/food-allergies
Vim & Vigor - Spring 2021

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