Thank you for your interest in and support of our APS Program! We continue to pursue personalized, proactive treatments for APS with a long-term goal of a cure. We do this work to make lives better, and we hope we can use these emails to build a community of others who want the same. We’re all in this together!

NEWS & ACHIEVEMENTS

APS Spotlight with Jason Knight, MD, PhD

Arthritis National Research Foundation (ANRF) Scholar Alum, Jason Knight, MD, PhD, explores the symptoms, management, and future of treatment for antiphospholipid syndrome.

RESEARCH & CLINICAL TRIALS

APS Pregnancy Experience – Community-Engaged Research

Led by Dr. Alex Harper, the APS Pregnancy Experience study seeks to understand experiences, priorities, and concerns surrounding pregnancy for individuals diagnosed with APS. If you decide to participate, you will be asked to complete a series of surveys that ask about your personal and medical information, including your history with APS and pregnancy. We anticipate these will take approximately 30 minutes to complete. Some people will be asked to participate in a follow-up interview lasting up to 60 minutes. Learn more and participate in the study.

Daratumumab in Primary Antiphospholipid Syndrome

(DARE-APS)

Since 2019, Dr. Knight and the APS Research Labs have been working with Dr. Doruk Erkan and his team at the Hospital for Special Surgery, APS ACTION, and researchers at both the National Institutes of Health and the Immune Tolerance Network to develop a first-of-its-kind clinical trial for individuals living with APS.

DARE-APS Study: We all know that new safe and effective treatments for APS are needed. In this research study, we will learn about the safety of the drug Darzalex® (daratumumab) in patients with APS and will also learn whether it reduces levels of the antiphospholipid antibodies that cause APS.

About the Study Drug: Daratumumab is an antibody that targets a protein called CD38, which is found on the surface of the immune cells that produce antiphospholipid antibodies (plasma cells). In APS, daratumumab may work by eliminating these antiphospholipid antibody-producing cells, thereby reducing damage to the body caused by antiphospholipid antibodies.

Daratumumab is currently approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to treat a blood cancer called multiple myeloma. However, it has not been tested in patients with APS and is therefore considered an experimental treatment in the DARE-APS study.

Participating in DARE-APS: Participation in DARE-APS will occur in two phases. During the treatment phase, participants will receive 8 weekly intravenous (IV) doses of daratumumab. The post-treatment follow-up phase will last an additional 10 months, during which 6 monitoring clinical visits will occur.



Eligibility: You may be eligible to participate in DARE-APS if you:

• Are between ages 18 and 65
• Have a diagnosis of APS
• Do not have lupus
• Have had certain problems associated with APS in the past 5 years such as blood clots or pregnancy complications

Learn More: To learn more, visit the DARE-APS website.

Our site (University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, MI) and the Hospital for Special Surgery located in New York, NY are actively recruiting for this study!

APS PROGRAM COMMUNITY Q&A SERIES

How Can APS Affect My Heart? What Can I Do to Keep My Heart Healthy?

The APS Program Community Q&A Series, written by Ray Zuo, MD, MSCS, was created to answer questions we receive from the APS Program community. In this month’s edition, Dr. Zuo discusses how APS can affect the heart and what you can do to keep your heart healthy. Read more.

We are interested in providing additional relevant patient education and would like to hear your thoughts. Share your ideas by sending an email to MichiganANSWERS@med.umich.edu.

SPARK BARK:

WHAT’S SPARKY UP TO A-HOUND TOWN?

by Amelia K. Knight

Sparky is a 7-year-old beagle!! As you may recall, Sparky was found meandering along a long country road 6 years ago by a good Samaritan who brought him to a local animal shelter where my family adopted him. A hop, skip, and a jump later, Sparky just turned seven and is living his best life. Of course, Sparky's best life includes loads of shenanigans and hijinks.

As mentioned above, the rumors are true that Sparky has another orbit-of-the-Earth-around-the-sun under his belt. On his birthday, things started out pretty usual. He got his daily toothbrush treat and then ran a few laps around the backyard. I can assure you that Sparky has not gotten less agile with age! While he was running, he bravely barked at a deer getting a tad too close to our backyard, which signaled that Sparky was “on his game” and therefore likely to have a good day. He came back inside and realized that all this work was deserving of a little canine nap. While he was dozing, I started to hatch a scheme for his birthday party. We invited his beagle buddy Dexter over for later in the day. And, while Sparky was still sleeping, I had one more venture in mind… 

My brother and I piled into my dad’s car, and we were off in search of the best birthday gifts ever. At last, we materialized in front of our local pet store. We split up so we could cover as much ground as possible. I, of course, headed straight for the treats section. There were so many goodies to choose from! It was a tough decision to say the least. I could always go for the Greenies toothbrushes that Sparky loves so much, but I was thinking bigger. There were bones as you might expect, yet nothing was screaming “Happy 7th Birthday Sparky You Are The Coolest Canine Around I Am Such A Huge Fan Of Yours.” So, I was a little distraught. Until my eyes were graced by the existence of pizza-flavored treats. As soon as I saw that box, I knew it was The one. I got two for safe measure and went to catch up with my brother. 

My brother was found in the outdoor activities section where all the tennis balls and frisbees were located. I saw my brother had already picked out the perfect multi-colored ball to frolic around with. Once that was decided, we went to look for my dad. My dad had gone for possibly the best section yet, filled with all the toys. I could tell he was having a hard time deciding and when I got there I could understand why. From floor to ceiling, there was so much merchandise. It was hard to take it all in at once. We were flabbergasted to think about what Sparky would want the most. We eventually decided on a stuffed gray platypus that squeaks. When we took stock of our haul, we knew Sparky would be pleased when we got home. 

It turns out Sparky had already woken up and was prowling the backyard. We called him in, and he came running. Once Sparky saw everything, he started to jump with joy. He got everything on his birthday wish list! He didn’t know what to do first. He eventually (actually within seconds) decided to gobble up a few pizza-flavored treats and then went into the backyard to play some “fetch” with the tennis ball. (Fetch for Sparky means that someone throws a ball, which he retrieves before immediately dashing to one of the deep corners of the backyard to hide it for later.) Once all the festivities were over, Sparky went to take another quick nap.

Sparky awoke to the sound of Dexter’s famous A-Roo. He jumped out of bed and saw that yes! It was true! There was another beagle! They ran off into the backyard where Sparky showed him all of his secret areas: the best place to bark at squirrels, where to sunbathe, and how to find all of the groundhog holes (some of which likely contain his various hidden fetch balls). Once they were done with the niceties, they embarked on an epic game of chase. They were both so fast it was hard to see them coming or going. In total, this went on for around an hour (seven hours in dog time). Once Dexter had to leave, Sparky decided to take me on in a game of tug-of-war with his new platypus. He won and left me feeling defeated. I rematched him so many times until I just could not anymore. He was a very victorious hound, and he knew it. 

Well, that is all for Sparky’s birthday-edition Sparky Bark! I hope you will all tune in next time. Thanks for reading!

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