@THEE Ashira Blazer MD

As SNAP benefits are delayed, please consider donating to your local food banks. Instantcart will allow you to send a donation to a local food bank right from your phone. It is easy and a great way to support our communities in these difficult times.

It’s my favorite time of year! The American College of Rheumatology #ACR25 meeting is just a few days away and I am celebrating with my 5th year of Immunology nails! What do you think about this year’s neutrophil netosis? Which year is your favorite?

I so enjoyed getting to highlight the important contributions of women in Rheumatology! I have admired so many over the years including @drpujamehta1.bsky.social Please take a look at the publication

Senate Republicans seek tougher Medicaid cuts and lower SALT deduction in Trump's 'big, beautiful bill' Republican leaders are pushing to fast-track the package by Trump's Fourth of July deadline.

As a rheumatologist serving safety-net hospitals, I’ve seen Medicaid save lives. Capping provider taxes means cutting off funding from the states that need it most. And mandating work for people with disabling illness? That’s not reform. It’s cruelty.
#ProtectMedicaid

www.pbs.org/newshour/amp...

Letter to Faculty on Self-Censorship and Boldness (opinion) In a letter to fellow faculty, Nolan L. Cabrera argues that self-censorship is not a strategy for self-preservation.

“Bending the knee and precomplying will not stave off these attacks.

Acquiescing to censorship will not stop the threats.

Only engaging in collective, bold, public, strategic struggle & disruption has the potential to do so.

We did not pick this fight, but this is the fight that we are in.”

🗣️ No more standing steroids in lupus! 🗣️ An important post by Lupus Refernence, Laurent Arnaud details recently published work showing even 6mg/day of GCs increase chronic comorbidities. We have too many targeted therapies to stick with steroids! What is your favorite treat to target approach? #sle

The War Rheum | RheumNow The effects on rheumatologists and their patients living in Ukraine largely have been unseen by the world. At ACR Convergence 2024, I met Dr. Marta Dzhus who practices at St. Michael's Clinical Hospit...

Treat to target goals are near impossible to achieve. Read my conversation with Dr Dzhus on how the war has affected patients and rheumatologic care in #Ukraine. @ashira-md.bsky.social @kristenyoung.bsky.social @ukrainematters.bsky.social
@rheumcat.bsky.social @rheumnow.bsky.social

Join us in 15 minutes on FaceBook Live

Monogenic causes and clinical phenotypes of lupus and Behçet syndrome. ELF, E74-like ETS transcription factor; PFIT, periodic fever, immunodeficiency, and thrombocytopenia; RELA, v-rel reticuloendotheliosis viral oncogene homolog A; TLR, Toll-like receptor; TRIAD, trisomy 8–associated autoinflammatory disease

Pathways involved in monogenic systemic lupus erythematosus. ACP, acid phosphatase; ADAR, adenosine deaminases that act on RNA; BAFFR, B cell–activating factor receptor; Bc, B cell; cGAS, cyclic guanosine monophosphate–AMP synthase; COPA, coatomer subunit alpha; Dc, dendritic cell; dsDNA, double-stranded DNA; dsRNA, double-stranded RNA; ER, endoplasmic reticulum; IFN, interferon; IL-1R, interleukin-1 receptor; IRF, IFN regulatory factor; ISG, IFN-stimulated gene; MAVS, mitochondrial antiviral signaling protein; MDA, melanoma differentiation–associated protein; MyD, myeloid differentiation factor; NEMO, NF-κB essential modulator; NET, neutrophil extracellular trap; NIK, NF-κB–inducing kinase; NK, natural killer; PTPN, protein tyrosine phosphatase nonreceptor; RelB, v-rel avian reticuloendotheliosis viral oncogene homolog B; RIG, retinoic acid–inducible gene; SOCS, suppressor of cytokine signaling; STING, stimulator of IFN genes; Tc, T cell; TLR, Toll-like receptor, TNFR, tumor necrosis factor receptor; TREX, three-prime repair exonuclease; USP, ubiquitin-specific protease.

Pathways involved in Behçet syndrome. ACP, acid phosphatase; ADAR, adenosine deaminases that act on RNA; BAFFR, B cell–activating factor receptor; Bc, B cell; cGAS, cyclic guanosine monophosphate–AMP synthase; COPA, coatomer subunit alpha; Dc, dendritic cell; dsDNA, double-stranded DNA; dsRNA, double-stranded RNA; ER, endoplasmic reticulum; IFN, interferon; IL-1R, interleukin-1 receptor; IRF, IFN regulatory factor; ISG, IFN-stimulated gene; MAVS, mitochondrial antiviral signaling protein; MDA, melanoma differentiation–associated protein; MyD, myeloid differentiation factor; NEMO, NF-κB essential modulator; NET, neutrophil extracellular trap; NIK, NF-κB–inducing kinase; NK, natural killer; PTPN, protein tyrosine phosphatase nonreceptor; RelB, v-rel avian reticuloendotheliosis viral oncogene homolog B; RIG, retinoic acid–inducible gene; SOCS, suppressor of cytokine signaling; STING, stimulator of IFN genes; Tc, T cell; TLR, Toll-like receptor, TNFR, tumor necrosis factor receptor; TREX, three-prime repair exonuclease; USP, ubiquitin-specific protease.

Monogenic causes and clinical phenotypes of lupus and Behçet syndrome, and pathways involved
#Medsky

Every single paused order, every single institution that refuses to treat an executive order as law, emboldens the people everywhere else who feel caught between Trump and their constitutional obligations. I truly believe it's possible for Trump and Musk's apparent authority to collapse overnight.

🆕 #Obinutuzumab (Obi) in Lupus Nephritis: the REGENCY Trial

Phase 3 RCT: Obi vs PBO
🫘 Pts w/ SLE nephritis Class III/IV ± 5
🎲 Randomized 1:1 to OBI v PBO (+MMF/steroids)
📊 Obi: ⇡rate of renal response and improved renal outcomes

#LupusNephritis #RheumSky #NephSky #MedSky #Lupus

AAMCOrd021025

BREAKING: Federal judge in Boston broadens block on Trump's NIH grant 15% overhead limit (indirect cost rates) to all recipients nationwide. Doc: www.documentcloud.org/documents/25...
#TROpalooza ain't done

The End of Science’s Peacetime Opinion | Defending the practice of science from its adversaries will require dealing with some uncomfortable truths.

"One thing is certain: The changes we make ourselves will be healthier than the ones our adversaries demand."

New work for @undark.org:
undark.org/2025/02/06/o...

All The Federal Lawsuits Related to Trump Admin Executive Orders We put them all in one place.

www.courtwatch.news/p/lawsuits-r...

Good to see you back in action!

❤️‍🔥 Join me & More Than Lupus FEB 22 @4PM EST for a Heart and #SLE #lupus talk

Heart attacks, strokes, blood clots are the most common cause of death in lupus patients + occur 10 yrs too early on average

We will discuss lupus and the heart and practical information people can use immediately!

list of banned keywords

🚨BREAKING. From a program officer at the National Science Foundation, a list of keywords that can cause a grant to be pulled. I will be sharing screenshots of these keywords along with a decision tree. Please share widely. This is a crisis for academic freedom & science.

I am finding it difficult to find the appropriate patients for these trials. Any patient who I think could be sick enough to consider has contraindications to enrollment. Patients with no contraindications I’d rather try on standard therapies first. How are you getting around this?

Happy:
Black history
Black present
Black future
Black love
Black joy
Black health
Black healing
Black people
Black community
Black family
Black kids
Black culture
Black creativity
Black ingenuity
Black legacy
Black innovation
Black liberation
Black resistance
Black existence
...month🖤

How Rolling Back DEI Programs Will Impact the Disability and Chronic Illness Community Only a few days into his second term in office, President Trump and his administration have not held back on their promises to target and terminate federal government agencies that oversee diversity, ...

🔥 There are so many things happening in recent events that worry me about the disenfranchised, chronically ill, and most vulnerable in our society! Here is a piece from @LupusMore highlighting an important, horrible problem:
www.morethanlupus.com/post/how-rol...

CNS Lupus: When Lupus Affects the Brain and Spinal Cord Live Longer and Better with Lupus! Whether you are a lupus patient seeking practical, easy to understand tips, or a healthcare provider wanting to treat your patients better, The Lupus Encyclopedia pr...

CNS #lupus #SLE:
www.lupusencyclopedia.com/cns-lupus

Hubby and I got our updated COVID-19 💉 to protect our baby.

👉🏾 The elderly, infants, and immunocompromised are high risk for COVID-19
👉🏾 The updated 💉 are the best protection
👉🏾 ACOG recommends pregnant women get vaccinated
👉🏾 Baby is protected for up to 6mo!

Get your 💉 free with most insurances

I’m so tired of wrapping presents for these kids. We should be able to put a bow on a raw Amazon box and just write, “You know what it is,” in Sharpie all over the outside.

Come to @LupusLA Facebook Live in 30 minutes (5PM EST, 2PM PST) for highlights from our recent @ACRheum #ACR24 Convergence Meeting. Highlights include:

- ACR Lupus Nephritis Management Guidelines
- 2 drugs have positive results in phase 3 clinical trials
- Then live Q and A

Why is preventing kidney flares so important in #SLE? Each flare reduces kidney function. This new baseline slowly declines further with age. Patients with repeated flares are more likely to go on to kidney failure.

This is going to save hospitals a lot of money !

www.pennmedicine.org/news/news-re...

Disease modification in #SLE means 1. preventing flares 2. Reducing steroids and 3. Reducing organ damage over time. Steroids temporarily reduce disease activity, but they do not prevent future flares and contribute to damage. Compare to biologic therapies that protect patients over the life course.

Climate actions on the neighbourhood level—Individual, collective, cultural, and socio-structural factors This paper takes a multi-perspective approach to understand drivers and barriers of climate action on the neighbourhood level. We start with the assumption that climate actions on the level of citizen...

🌍 Local Climate Action Matters

Neighbourhoods drive climate solutions! A study published in @plos.bsky.social reveals how collective action & strong social ties can boost climate efforts.

Do you have any effective local initiatives to share?

journals.plos.org/climate/arti...

#SciComm 🧪 🍎