Lupus. The disease afflicts as many as two million Americans, but it took a pop star to really bring it into the spotlight.
(In case you missed it, earlier this summer Lady Gaga told Larry King that she tested “borderline positive” for the disease, in which the body’s immune cells accidentally attack the body itself, rather than typical ‘bad guys’ like germs and viruses.)
But what are lupus’s symptoms, exactly? And how can you be sure you have it? The star’s announcement illustrates how slippery the diagnosis can be, and how much the disease varies from one patient to the next (it can be limited to occasional rashes and joint pain in some patients, but can cause devastating organ damage in others).
“Symptoms can be unclear, can come and go, and can evolve over time. But early diagnosis is critical,” said URMC’s Dr. Jennifer Anolik, who will help host a free “Lupus Education Day” event at the medical center on Saturday, Oct. 9.
Has Lady Gaga’s proclamation got you scratching your head? If you or a loved one have lupus, you won’t want to miss this half-day event. In the clip above, Dr. Anolik offers a little taste of what the day will bring.
Anolik and her colleagues, rheumatologists Dr. Iñaki Sanz and Dr. John Looney, treat 400 lupus patients throughout Western New York. They’re also in hot pursuit of some of the nation’s most promising treatments. To register for the event, call Janet DiMora at (585) 273-4670. You can also learn more about URMC lupus clinical care, here.
