Region – The “Stepping Out to Cure Scleroderma 11th Annual Worcester Walk” will be held May 5 at The Bancroft School, 110 Shore Drive, Worcester. Registration starts at 10 a.m. and the walk begins at 12 p.m.
The walk is in memory of Kevin Dully and “in the spirit” of Susan G. (Mowry) Porcaro.
Scleroderma is a chronic, often progressive, autoimmune disease in which the immune system attacks its own body. Scleroderma means “hard skin.” It can cause a thickening and tightening of the skin. In some cases, it causes serious damage to internal organs including the lungs, heart, kidneys, esophagus and gastrointestinal tract. As scarring, or sclerosis, of these organs and organ systems progress, they work less effectively, and can lead to organ failure and death.
Some medications and treatments can help with certain symptoms, but there is no cure for scleroderma. The disease affects about 300,000 people across the U.S. In comparison, approximately the same number of people are affected by multiple sclerosis.
For more information on the walk go to http://www.scleroderma.org/site/TR/Events/NewEnglandChapter?fr_id=1280&pg=entry#.UYA9oMq6gcs or contact Rebecca Dube, 978- 887-0658 or email [email protected].
Donations may also be sent to: Scleroderma Foundation New England, 462 Boston Street, Suite 1-1, Topsfield, MA? 01983.
