Sjogren's Syndrome affects almost 4,000,000 Americans and is the 2nd leading autoimmune rheumatic disease in the country. This little known, yet severely disabling, disease can cause dry eyes, dry mouth, and dysfunction of internal organs, including the kidneys, gastrointestinal system, blood vessels, lungs, liver, pancreas, and nervous system. Patients may experience extreme fatigue, joint pain, and have a higher risk of lymphoma. I know, because I have watched first hand. My sister, Laura, suffers from Sjogren's Syndrome.
Laura has suffered for more than 10 years without proper diagnosis. She has recently visited Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville. She has just undergone a very agressive chemotherapy treatment in hopes of controlling her Sjogren's symptoms and eliminating the lymphoma. Now we wait in hopes that it will help. If the treatment is a success, she will have to repeat it every four months.
Updated 2/10/10
Laura had a serious reaction to the treatment. After being hospitalized for over a week, she has been taken off all of the "once hopeful" drugs as they turned out to be far too dangerous. As her body fights to recover from a serious infection, she is desperate to find a new treatment. Now I realize, more than ever, how important it is for researchers to find help for patients with Sjogren's Syndrome.
I have decided to join forces with the Sjogren's Syndrome Foundation by joining Team Sjogren's and running the Rock and Roll Marathon in April to continue to raise awareness and funds for the fight against Sjogren's. My runs are starting to get longer and a lttle more challenging, but I am hoping as the weather starts to warm up they won't be so tough.
Updated 4/5/10
Laura will be visiting Mayo Clinic in Florida again while I am in Nashville. I can only hope they will be able to provide her with some relief from her symptoms.
Updated 5/3/10
We had a great weekend in Nashville. The hills and warm temps made it a bit rough, but I made it! We enjoyed meeting the Sjogren's team. I hope to be able to join another event in the future. We have raised over $5400 since the Walk in October!
Laura's visit to Mayo was a disappointing one. The doctor was was unable to provide her with any new treatment options. This is why awareness and research are so important.
Thank you,
Sue Handchetz and Team Dour
Thank you so much to everyone who has donated here, offline or on one of the other Team Dour sites including Julie and Randy Roth, Jay and Dawn Herbig, Debbie and Tod Todd, Lynne, Tracy Hotchkiss, Karen Patel, Jack and Patty Handchetz, Richard and Kathleen Ericksen, Ned and Linda Calderone, Sadie Gannon, Karen Helbig, Lisa and Mike Bartlett, Christina, Scott and Jaime Elias, Wendy Papka, Cindi Rodriguez, Eileen O'Brien, Susan Papa, Stacey Loge, Mickey Reidy, Margie Wiedemann, Jackie Blatti, Mary Zungrone, Mike Brown, Bill and Ellen Lasiewicz, Bob and Cathy Paperniak, Carolyn Bien, Tiffany Lutter , Donna Ziemer, Helen Lee, Chris and Eileen, Josephine, Linda and Chesak staff, Kevin and Tina, Dad and Arlene, Paul and Sue Hausner, Owacres, Team Huennekens, Iris Sherman, Eileen and Frank B, David and Carol Edwards, Sergey and Svetlana Demchenko, Julie Sperber, Aunt Nancy, Rich and Kathy Haggelend, Margo Adams, Maria Wesola, Corina Baker, Mom Brown, Scott Zettek, Cheryl Cipparone, Quality Craft, Megan Leake, Laura Dour, Jill Snyder, Mickey Tveter, Carie Mazur, Donna Pietrusiewicz, Jake and Carol Jakimow, Mr. and Mrs. Jerrick, Enid Durbin, Murphy, Larkin and Moran families, Tom and Sue Sullivan, Kristin Zajac, Aunt Susan and Uncle Jack, Elaine Brody and everyone who participated in the Jewel and Kosta fundraisers(which raised over $300!).