SAN ANTONIO – Jackie Lee is looking to raise awareness for lupus in San Antonio with a new event happening this Saturday.
Lee was diagnosed with the autoimmune disease in 1987. She was just a teenager and had never heard about the disease before.
“It’s rarely spoken about. A lot of people don’t even know about lupus and I’m just trying to bring more awareness, more attention to the disease,” said Lee.
The Lupus Foundation of America defines lupus as a chronic disease that can cause inflammation and pain in any part of the body. It primarily affects the skin, joints and internal organs.
According to the foundation, there are four different types of lupus:
- Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is the most common type. It causes inflammation of the organ systems in the body.
- Cutaneous lupus is limited to affecting the skin.
- Drug-induced lupus is a lupus-like disease caused by certain drug prescriptions.
- Neonatal lupus is a rare condition that affects infants of women who have lupus.
Lupus mainly affects women ages 15 to 44. Also, nine out of 10 people with lupus are women.
Since May is Lupus Awareness Month, Lee decided to begin a walk to raise awareness.
Lee will host the second annual Walk Out Lupus event this Saturday, beginning at 9 a.m., at the Copernicus Community Center.
The walk is free and open for anyone to join.
“It’s just something I want people to come out and support, and we’re going to have information there, water, Gatorade. And if anyone has questions, I have pamphlets, and they can talk to me,” Lee said.
You can learn more about the walk by checking out Lee’s Facebook page — The Beauty of Lupus.