Cystic fibrosis (CF) is an autosomal recessive, multisystem disorder which
greatly reduces the lifespan of its victims, largely by gradual, infection-
driven destruction of the lungs. Advances in therapy to date have improved
median survival from less than 10 years to over 30 years of age. New scient
ific advances in the past 10 years, notably discovery of the CF gene and in
creasing understanding of its protein product, hold forth hope of even furt
her therapeutic advances. This review will highlight the clinical character
istics of CF, current standard therapies and directions of ongoing research
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