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Greetings!
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Need Financial Assistance to Attend the National Conference? Apply For a Scholarship
 Thanks to the generous support of our donors, the Scleroderma Foundation is able to provide full and partial scholarships to attend the National Patient Education Conference in Dallas this July. Scholarships are awarded based on the following criteria:
- Must be a current Scleroderma Foundation member.
- Financial need (verification required through submission of most recent federal tax return or SSDI income statement).
- Priority given to applicants attending their first Scleroderma Foundation national conference.
- Involvement in Scleroderma Foundation activities.
The number of scholarship awards depends on the number of gifts received to the scholarship fund and the number of qualified applications received. Scholarships are available for adult and juvenile patients, and parent caregivers for minor children with scleroderma. The application deadline is Friday, April 20. Download the application now. If you have any questions, contact Tracey Sperry at (800) 722-4673 or tsperry@scleroderma.org. If you'd like to make a gift to the scholarship fund, please click here.
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Patient Groups Collaborate for First Fibrosis Across Organs Symposium
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A first-of-its-kind medical symposium held earlier this month may spur faster progress in lung, liver, kidney, heart and skin fibrosis. The collaboration between The Coalition for Pulmonary Fibrosis (CPF), The Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation (PFF) and the Hermansky-Pudlak Syndrome Network (HPS Network) brought together experts in fibrotic diseases from around the world to explore similarities in fibrosis of different organ systems. The collaborative effort could drive future treatments and cures.
Read the full press release.
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Some Foods and Medications Don't Mix
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 Taking some of your daily medications with certain foods and beverages may not always be the best thing. Chocolate, orange juice, coffee and some other common items may interact different with your medications, vitamins or other herbal supplements. Check out this article from the Chicago Tribune about which combinations you should avoid.
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Chronic Heartburn Could Hurt Your Teeth
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New research indicates that if you have gastroesophageal reflux disease, or GERD, all of that extra acid in your mouth could severely damage your teeth. The study, which followed patients over six months, found that nearly half of those people with GERD suffered much worse tooth wear, including thin, sharp and pitted teeth, and erosion than healthy people. Read more about this research now.
After the skin, the digestive system is the most commonly affected organ system in people with scleroderma, affecting about 75 to 90 percent of all patients. (Source: Digestive System Involvement by Dinesh Khanna, M.D., MSc). |
