The classic facial rash caused by lupus. Image from Wikimedia Commons.
Despite the numerous instances that the line “It’s never lupus” may have been said on “House MD,” sometimes it actually is lupus. Lady Gaga recently disclosed that she has been tested for the disease, and she expects to be diagnosed with it. It runs in her family. As far as chronic conditions go, lupus is not quite the death sentence some others are, but it is crucial. It is an auto-immune disease, and it can be fatal.
You don’t want it to be lupus
While not quite the nightmare of Lou Gehrig’s Disease or other diseases, lupus is still serious. It is a chronic condition that has to be managed, and there is a modest chance of it being fatal. Lupus has a five-year survival rate of about 95 percent and a 20-year survival rate of just less than 80 percent. Treatment is usually immuno-suppressants. As treatments go, it isn’t cheap, but it won’t send you running for payday loans as quickly as others
What is Lupus?
Lupus, like other autoimmune diseases, is a defect of the immune system. The body produces antibodies that fight off germs, but a defect of the immune system causes those antibodies to stop recognizing the difference between germs and regular cells. Then the antibodies attack normal tissue, which causes problems including joint pain and fever, among others. There are four main types of the disease, according to the Lupus Foundation, the most serious of which is systemic lupus erythematosus, which can lead to kidney, lung, or heart damage and high risk of infection. The disease is called “lupus” because of a red mask-like rash carriers get on their faces. In the Middle Ages, this rash was referred to as being almost “wolf-like,” hence “lupus,” which means “wolf” in Latin.
What does this mean for Lady Gaga?
Well, she only said she was “borderline positive,” according to ABC. All that means is Lady Gaga might have it, and she may eventually need treatment. Soon Lady Gaga will release the video for “Alejandro,” which voters on MTV News deemed their favorite summer jam for 2010. Other celebrities have had lupus, including Michael Jackson. Several famous people have passed away from it, including Ray Walston, Michael (son of John) Wayne, former President of the Philippines Ferdinand Marcos and supposedly “Little Women” author Louisa May Walcott.
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