Cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) modulator therapies have transformed the outlook for many people living with cystic fibrosis (CF).

But while these have delivered substantial improvements in lung function, reduced exacerbation rates and markedly improved quality of life for the majority of eligible patients, they have also created a new set of clinical challenges.

Adult CF services are having to rapidly adapt to a changed landscape in which the nature of clinical work and the needs of the patient population have evolved considerably.

This is something Dr Uta Hill, respiratory consultant and the cystic fibrosis lead and bronchiectasis co-clinical lead at the Cambridge Centre for Lung Infection at Royal Papworth Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, knows all too well.

Dr Hill will examine exactly what the modulator era means for adult CF services at Clinical Excellence in Respiratory Care – a free one-day virtual event taking place on 12 May 2026, open to all UK healthcare professionals. Register now to secure your place.

Long-term monitoring and CF care transitions

Modulator therapy has not eliminated CF as a clinical entity. Patients continue to carry residual disease burden, including structural lung damage accrued before treatment began and persistent sino-pulmonary disease.

Long-term monitoring frameworks developed in the pre-modulator era are now being reassessed, and Dr Hill’s session will explore which investigations remain clinically necessary and how to interpret results in patients whose baseline has significantly changed.

What’s more, as young people transitioning to adult services now do so in significantly better clinical health than previous generations, with different expectations of their care and less experience of acute illness, this brings with it additional considerations.

Adult services are adapting their transition programmes accordingly, while managing a growing and more stable patient population with broader long-term needs.

Addressing broader CF clinical concerns

Indeed, as survival and quality of life improve, adult CF services are seeing a wider range of clinical concerns come to the fore.

Mental health remains a significant issue, fertility is an increasingly relevant consideration as more patients feel well enough to consider pregnancy, and metabolic complications including CF-related diabetes and bone disease continue to require active management alongside modulator therapy.

This session will therefore consider how adult CF teams can structure their services to address this broadening clinical agenda, with top tips from Dr Hill.

Clinical Excellence in Respiratory Care

The Clinical Excellence in Respiratory Care event will take place virtually on 12 May 2026 and is free to attend for UK respiratory clinicians and members of the multidisciplinary team.

The programme will also explore advanced lung cancer pathways and precision medicine, managing complex ventilatory failure beyond OSA, tuberculosis trends and pulmonary hypertension alongside this session on CF and CFTR modulator therapies.

As a one-day virtual event, you can join the sessions most relevant to your role and schedule, with on-demand access available after the event.

Register now to secure your place and be part of the discussion shaping modern respiratory services, and catch up on previous Clinical Excellence in Respiratory Care sessions in our Catch-up zone, which includes previous sessions from Dr Hill on the evolution of CFTR modulator therapy and on diagnostic imaging for respiratory conditions.