Addressing the Most Critical Challenges in COPD: An Expert Review of Emotional, Economic, and Evidence-Based Perspectives

Abstract: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a progressive, non-communicable respiratory disease characterized by frequent symptoms, including dyspnea, cough, and sputum production. It affects approximately 10.6% of the global population. It is the third cause of death worldwide and it is projected to impact 592 million globally by 2050. Risk factors, including smoking, air pollution, genetics and infections, can influence disease progression and impact patients’ daily lives, causing symptoms such as shortness of breath, fatigue and cough, along with other comorbidities, such as cardiovascular diseases or anxiety. Additionally, COPD imposes a significant economic burden on the health system and patients themselves. Despite being a preventable and treatable disease, the patient journey is marked by multiple challenges, including emotional, economic, and evidence-based barriers that delay diagnosis, hinder treatment and worsen the disease’s impact, due to misconceptions, stigma, limited access to diagnostic resources, and inconsistent treatment practices. In this expert review, we propose a framework for discussion about COPD from an emotional, economic and evidence-based perspective, and recommend calls to action to address these challenges, with the aim of reducing the global economic, patient and social burden of COPD. Plain Language Summary: Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is a progressive, non-communicable respiratory disease associated with symptoms such as dyspnea, cough, and sputum production, which has a significant impact on patients’ quality of life. Currently, it is the third leading cause of death globally and it affects approximately 10.6% of the global population. Despite its severity, COPD is not a priority for healthcare systems and is less prioritized compared to other chronic diseases. For this review, we examined existing literature and data on COPD impact on patients and healthcare systems to identify challenges in diagnosis, treatment, and long-term monitoring and propose calls to action to make COPD a priority for policymakers. With this aim, we proposed a framework to describe challenges from an emotional, economic, and evidence-based perspective and propose calls to action addressing the most critical challenges of COPD along the patient journey, such as raising awareness, improving diagnostic practices, and ensuring access to effective treatments. We encourage policymakers to increase public health education, enhance healthcare provider training, and strengthen advocacy efforts to achieve earlier diagnosis, better treatment adherence, and improved quality of life for people with COPD. Keywords: COPD, patient, emotional perspective, economics, evidence-based, expert review