The Palmetto Chapter of the Scleroderma Foundation began as a support group for patients, their families and caregivers, plus other newly diagnosed individuals. Today, it continues to function as a safe haven for members to relate, communicate and share research news, increase public awareness and champion fund-raising efforts for research and other outreach. For me, finding out that my mother and family were not alone in fighting this disease was such a burden lifted off my shoulders, said Rosemary Brezden, president of the Palmetto Chapter of the Scleroderma Foundation. I hope that this chapter gives that gift to others. The disease is so highly individualized that it can affect one person differently from another.
Research shows that scleroderma can follow one of two paths.
It can progress to become an acute, life-threatening condition or it can follow an extremely slow course. As the disease progresses, patients usually suffer from a multitude of systemic conditions which affect the lungs, heart, kidney and digestive system. Like many chronic autoimmune diseases, scleroderma affects women more than men, especially African American women. Of the major complications associated with the disease, pulmonary fibrosis and malignant hypertension are leading causes of death among most scleroderma victims. For physicians, their challenge continues to focus on early identification and diagnosis of symptoms that are usually non-specific.