Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. The CFMATTERS study and the future of microbiome-directed trials in cystic fibrosis

Few ideas have so captivated respiratory medicine as the prospect of tailoring antimicrobial therapy to the airway microbiome. Advances in sequencing technology have turned once-unseen microbial communities into measurable, classifiable data, inviting the belief that with the right approach, better clinical outcomes will follow [1]. This optimism is not misplaced. The airway microbiome represents a rich and dynamic layer of biological complexity, clearly capable of influencing inflammation, infection and therapeutic response [1–4].