If the claims by researchers at the University of Colorado School of Medicine in Denver are to be believed, cystic fibrosis patients could be in for a new drug that would help ease their pain.

Currently under trial in America, the new experimental drug, denufosol, helps the patients by preventing the formation of mucus.

A Professor of paediatrics at the University of Colorado School of Medicine in Denver, Dr. Frank Accurso, says the new medication "helps enhance the hydration of the airways and can aid in clearing mucus". "The drug is different from other cystic fibrosis medications which primarily treat the symptoms rather than the underlying causes", he said.

A genetic ailment, cystic fibrosis clogs several organs, particularly the lungs and pancreas, with sticky mucus.

For their research, the doctors analyzed the effect of the new drug on 352 cystic fibrosis patients. The study participants were either given the new drug -- three times daily for 24 weeks -- or a placebo.

While in the beginning the research partakers who were given the new drug showed mild impairment in the functioning of their lungs, but after a few days it was noticed that the patients had better exhalation rates than the placebo group.