Local woman shares her lupus journey ahead of Walk with Us to Cure Lupus this weekend
NEW YORK -- Your immune system is supposed to help keep your body safe and healthy.
But imagine if it was working against you instead? That's what lupus does.
It's an autoimmune disease, meaning a person's immune system attacks their normal, healthy tissue. That can cause inflammation, pain and damage to parts of the body.
The disease can affect anyone, but is mostly seen in women. There are many symptoms, including extreme fatigue, swollen joints, fever, abnormal blood clotting and hair loss.
It can be hard to diagnose, since many of the symptoms can be mistaken for other diseases. This can be a real problem for patients.
A local woman named Alexis Santana joined CBS2 to share her lupus journey and shed light on the disease.
"It was definitely frustrating, especially when I was much younger in my early 20s when I first started feeling all these symptoms, because I didn't really understand what was going on. I first put it off as doing my job and everything," she said. "But as time went on and things progressively got worse, I really started to stand up for myself and advocate and really push the doctors to do more tests."
This weekend, you can also join us supporting the search for a cure.
The New York City Walk with Us to Cure Lupus is this Saturday, Oct. 22. The event starts at 9 a.m. at the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum, with opening ceremonies hosted by our very own Natalie Duddridge.
CBS2 is a proud partner under our #BetterTogether campaign.
CLICK HERE to register for the walk or donate to the Lupus Research Alliance.
