New York Times Website's Patient Voices Series Features People Affected by Lupus

As part of its Patient Voices series, The New York Times website is featuring the stories of people from across the country who are affected by lupus. Using audio interviews and photos, Patient Voices seeks to give a glimpse into the life of someone living with lupus.

The individuals featured are as diverse as the disease itself, and include actress/model and Lupus Foundation of America (LFA) national spokesperson Tomiko Fraser Hines, who lost her sister to lupus, and Jeremy Margolis, who recently suffered a heart attack resulting from lupus complications.

The LFA would like to thank the participants for having the courage to share their stories, and believes they will not only help raise awareness of lupus, but will also educate the public about a disease that is often misunderstood and under recognized.

The LFA would also like to extend its gratitude to The New York Times for helping to increase awareness of lupus, an unpredictable and potentially fatal disease that affects an estimated 1.5 million Americans and at least five million people worldwide.

Visit The New York Times website, and listen to the interviews and view the pictures.

LFA's "Your Skin & Lupus" Webchat to be Held Wednesday, July 15 at 3 p.m. Eastern

Reminder -- the Lupus Foundation of America's Webchat is next Wednesday afternoon, July 15, at 3 p.m. Eastern Time.

The LFA welcomes Dr. Andrew Franks, who will serve as the guest expert for the Your Skin & Lupus webchat.

This is your opportunity to ask questions and learn from a lupus expert. Dr. Franks is Clinical Professor of Dermatology and the Director of the Connective Tissue Disease Section of The Skin & Cancer Unit at New York University Medical Center. He continues to train other dermatologists, rheumatologists, and students in this specialty.

You can submit a question in advance here.

We hope you can join us Wednesday afternoon, July 15. To do so, you can log in to the live chat here.

As always, copies of all chat transcripts are posted online within a day or 2 of the chat. Follow this link to read the LFA's previous chat transcripts.

Lupus Blog Spotlight: 710.0: A Life With Lupus

Good morning everyone. Hope you had a safe 4th of July weekend. Mine was relatively uneventful, which was fine by me.

Let's jump back into things. It's been a while since I did a lupus blog spotlight, so I thought I would this morning.

I would like to share a lupus blog with you. It is called 710.0: A Life With Lupus. As an FYI ... "710.0" is the ICD-9 (International Classification of Diseases) code for "SLE," aka systemic lupus erythematosus.

Here's a little bit about Beep, a blogger living in California.

"I went from an Ivy League college, to decades of enforced poverty because I've needed to qualify for government health care in the U.S. since being diagnosed with lupus at the age of 23."

If you have some time, swing by 710.0: A Life With Lupus and say hi.

That's the lupus scoop from my end. Happy Monday, and have a great week.

Until next time, Wick

How Lupus Can Affect Your Skin

Summer is here, and with summer comes vacations and lots of exposure to the sun. For many people who are living with lupus, this means you have to prepare yourself for the light -- both sun and artificial -- that you’ll face during the day. Every day.

To help make sure you’re as protected as possible when you venture outside … for a game of miniature golf while you’re on vacation, or while you’re working inside beneath fluorescent lights, the LFA has created a special section of content for you.

Some of the items you'll find on this landing page include:

• Info on LFA's July 15 webchat on "Lupus and Your Skin"
• Detailed content on lupus and your skin
• Lupus Now articles pertaining to lupus and your skin
• Ask the Experts: Lupus and Your Skin
• How to Find a Dermatologist

Prepare yourself for the light.

Positive Long-Term Data for BENLYSTA (formerly LYMPHOSTAT-B®) in Patients with Active Lupus

Human Genome Sciences (HGS) has reported continuation data from a Phase II study of BENLYSTA™ (belimumab, formerly LymphoStat-B®) showing sustained improvement in patients with active systemic lupus after four years of treatment. The data was presented at the EULAR 2009 scientific meeting in Copenhagen, Denmark.

Early results from a 52-week Phase III study of BENLYSTA™ are expected to be announced in July and results from a 76-week study are scheduled to be released in November.

BENLYSTA™ is being co-developed and commercialized by HGS and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK).

The HGS website has the full release about this additional Phase II data.

In the Mix: Designing a Social Life around the Limits of Lupus

It’s always a challenge for people with lupus to keep up with more active friends and make concrete social plans. But don’t use it as an excuse for not maintaining old friendships or creating new ones. Instead, focus on helping the people in your life better understand your condition and its restrictions: Once you accept and make peace with your situation, it will be easier for you to explain it to others.

Learn how you can to keep lupus from slowing your social life.

The Summer 2009 Issue of Lupus Now Magazine Has Arrived

We have a lot for you in the new Summer issue of Lupus Now magazine! In particular, the articles cover topics that were requested by our readers in past surveys.

Understanding how lupus runs in families, and why, led to our cover story on the heredity of lupus. It will get you thinking about your own family history, and whether autoimmune diseases have a foothold in your family tree.

And if lupus has caused your path in life to skip outside the lines, or even turn a right angle, you’ll enjoy meeting four people whose lupus changed their lives for the better, in "Changing Direction."

"In the Mix" may help you redesign your social life by hearing from two people whose fatigue and other symptoms have changed the way they keep up with friends.

Ever feel like speaking out on an issue near and dear to your heart? LaShundra Rundles did just that, and gained international recognition for her communication skills -- and as an African American woman. Even more courageous is her ongoing battle with lupus.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently released new and updated guidelines on vaccinations, and we have summarized the recommendations in a special chart. A report on the exposure you get from artificial indoor UV light will be of great interest to those of you who are photosensitive, even indoors.

Also, starting with this issue, several regular columns have moved online, so look for "Ask the Experts," "Healthful Eating," and "Circle of Hope" at lupusnow.org.

Don't want to miss out on the action? Then subscribe to Lupus Now magazine.