Health: Online help for vasculitis sufferers

People suffering from a life-threatening disease are being offered the chance to gain expert advice and have their questions answered from two of the country’s top medical specialists.
By The Newsroom
Published 9th Nov 2011, 04:57 BST

The disease, vasculitis, is an incurable group of disorders which inflame and destroy blood vessels and affects one in 30,000 people in the UK.

The online consultation has been organised by the Lauren Currie Twilight Foundation. The charity was set up in memory of Lauren Currie by her parents Grant and Adrienne whose aim is to raise awareness and funds for medical research into this incurable disease. Lauren sadly died from vasculitis last October when she was 15, just 48 hours after she was diagnosed.

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Held on Wednesday, November 16 at 5pm, the webinar will give sufferers of vasculitis a chance to speak directly to specialists of this rare disease.

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The event will focus on Wegener’s Granulomatosis, one of the most aggressive strains of vasculitis, and the one which Lauren Currie suffered from. Family and friends of those affected by the disease are also welcome to take part.

The second in a series of online consultations organised by the charity, aimed at bringing support to sufferers of the disease, will feature Dr Brian Neilly of Glasgow Royal Infirmary who will discuss the effects on the lungs with Wegener’s, Dr Lars-Peter Erwig of Medial Sciences in Aberdeen who will discuss the renal effects from Wegener’s and John Mills, the chairman of Vasculitis UK, who will discuss living with Wegener’s.

Local GPs who wish learn more about the condition are also invited to take part.

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Lauren’s dad, Grant Currie, said: “For victims of this cruel condition it can be very isolating. Yet it is vitally important that they can talk to other sufferers or have access to information on the disease.

“Also it is a great opportunity for those affected to be able to ask questions to our guest panel of leading vasculitis specialists. If just one person benefits from this online conference it will be worthwhile as it could make a huge difference to these patients’ lives.

“Vasculitis is still a relatively unknown disease and research into it is still at a very early stage. As such a rare disease, researchers are dependent on the likes of Lauren’s foundation to partly fund research in the UK.”

For free registration for the online conference visit http://www.thelaurencurrietwilightfoundation.org the website

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