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Greetings!
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Overwhelmed with a Scleroderma Diagnosis?
If you're like many other scleroderma patients, a new diagnosis can be overwhelming. The Scleroderma Foundation is here to help. We offer the following resources to help make this diagnosis a little bit easier on you:
- A toll-free help line. Call (800) 722-HOPE (4673) from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. (Eastern) Monday through Friday. Our dedicated staff will connect you with important resources.
- A 24/7 online message board. Log on to the Foundation's discussion board hosted by Inspire to talk with other patients, family members, caregivers and friends for much-needed support and advice.
- Free information packets. Call our office to request free information about the disease, our support groups and more.
- The Foundation's Website. Please visit www.scleroderma.org to find downloadable brochures, studies, patient profiles and more.
Don't feel alone or overwhelmed with your new diagnosis. We're here to offer you support and guidance. If you have any questions, please email us at sfinfo@scleroderma.org.
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New Evidence Indicates Drug Targets Underlying Cause of PAH
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 Novartis announced this week new data from the pivotal Phase III IMPRES clinical trial showing that the investigational therapy QTI571 (imatinib) significantly improved exercise capacity in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) after 24 weeks compared with placebo. Evidence indicates that QTI571 targets an underlying cause of PAH by counteracting uncontrolled growth of arterial smooth muscle cells.
Read the full press release from Novartis.
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University of California-Davis Researcher Awarded Grant
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 Emanual Maverakis, M.D., assistant professor of Dermatology at the University of California-Davis, was awarded a $2.3 million grant to characterize the immune response in scleroderma to find effective therapies for this devastating disease. His group has devised novel strategies to isolate individual pathogenic immune cells from these patients.
Three researchers from the university received awards from the National Institutes of Health worth a total of $8.9 million over five years.
Read more about the awards.
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Save 80 Percent on Prescriptions
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 The Southern California Chapter's next monthly teleseminar will be held at 11 a.m. (Pacific) Thursday, Oct. 6. Join Elizabeth Messenger of NeedyMeds and discuss assistance for people who are unable to afford their prescription medications and health care costs. Find out how you can receive a free NeedyMeds Drug Discount Card, which can save you up to 80 percent off on your prescriptions.
To join the teleseminar, call (877) 216-1555 and enter passcode 981555. If you are unable to attend, the audio of the seminar will be available online in the coming weeks.
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All Online Health Information Is Not Created Equal
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The Internet has no equal as an information storehouse. The trick is to know how to get right to a source of useful information and not waste time on websites that are biased, trying to sell you something or just plain wrong.
The Washington Post examined how to best identify online information about your health.
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