This past year has been an exciting year for Berne, and me and the CF community as a whole!

From Maren: As I am writing this, I have 5 weeks left of my last year of college! I will graduate in three years from the University Honors Program with a Bachelor of Arts in public health and a minor in public policy! My hope is to get involved in health policy and economics work to ensure everyone has access to healthcare and necessary life-saving treatments like the ones we have benefited from. 

I am also thrilled to announce I will be pursuing a Masters in Health Policy, Planning, and Financing through a joint program at the London School of Economics and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine starting in September of 2026! I can’t wait! This summer I will be spending time with my friends and family in Iowa City, Cedar Falls, and Waverly, and traveling!

For fun, I like to go to Hawkeye sports, spend time outside, check out the farmers market and thrift stores, hang out with my friends, and plan future travel! In January, I spent five days backpacking, and skiing around Europe with my best friend and our former foreign exchange student.

My health: I had surgery last May to remove a large kidney stone -  a CF side-effect. Luckily, they found it before I had any problems. I was also hospitalized for the first week of this semester for a CF related digestive issue. I am better now and can manage proactively at home. I still have diabetes and wear a glucose monitor but I don’t have to take insulin right now. Other than that my health has been great. In the adult clinic and because I’m doing well, I only have to go to check-ups every 6 months (instead of every three months). Of course, my health and health care was a huge concern when I was deciding if I should go to London this fall. There are still details to work out. Next steps: I will meet with my team in the U.S. and then transfer my care to the CF center in London, as well as transferring insurance for my prescriptions. Fingers crossed that it goes smoothly.

From Berne: 

I am a Community Regional Planning major at Iowa State University. As a part of this major I have been able to take field trips across Iowa, including working a bike trail project in Marshalltown. Next week I’m going on a week-long trip with my class to Birmingham, Alabama.

I have recently been developing my cooking skills, specifically pho and curry, and have been watching every sport possible. In January, I went to Europe too, skiing with my buddies and visiting Joris, our former exchange student in Austria. We just got back from spring break. I had a great time in Tucson with my cousins and a quick trip to Disneyland too.

I have been quite healthy; decreasing my need for medication and not doing chest therapy. Unfortunately, my sinus problems have been worsening. I will need surgery sometime soon. People with CF have a lot of sinus problems.  While I don’t want to have surgery, I’m looking forward to getting rid of some of my symptoms.

This summer I plan to spend time in the Portland area with my family. I hope to find an internship in my field. In the fall I'll attend Iowa State for my fourth year and graduate in May 2027. 

For the entire CF community, a light has been shining on the science and research that led to the medications that have been life-changing for people with CF. Dr. Welsh, a world-renowned CF researcher at the University of Iowa, won the 2025 Lasker-DeBakey Clinical Medical Research Award. This is often considered the “America’s Nobels”. Dr. Welsh’s work is the reason we understand the mutations causing CF, and why we have modulators to fix them.

Berne and I were featured in articles written by the Daily Iowan and the Iowa Magazine to share how Dr. Welsh’s lab has changed what living with CF looks like - from a relentless disease shortening lives, to a more manageable chronic illness where the future is no longer so scary.

Additionally, USA Today/Des Moines Register created a documentary and accompanying articles about the amazing work of Dr. Welsh and his team. Ironically, when several of these articles came out in January, I (Maren) was in the hospital receiving care from several of the people on this world-renowned research team. It makes us really grateful we get care at U of I - from the best in the world!

After all this progress, why are we still walking and asking for support for the CF Foundation?

• About 10% of people with CF still don’t have access to a modulator! Their mutations are very complicated and hard to solve. To help this group of people will require gene therapy. Gene therapy could also be a cure for all of us with CF. Thankfully, researchers and pharmaceutical companies are working around the clock to discover a gene editing tool to help cure and treat CF. Many are currently in the pipeline. 

• As CF life expectancy increases, we start to run into problems with cancer, diabetes, liver complications, and many more comorbidities people with CF are at risk of. 

• Many research labs are relying on grants from CFF to continue their research. It’s important we don’t stop pushing until CF stands for Cure Found.

We are very thankful for your continued support from all across the world! If you are able, we invite you to join us for the CF Walk on May 9th, in Iowa City, at Kinnick Stadium! GO HAWKS! And I guess, Cyclones too.

Maren, Berne, Chris, Stacy