Selena Gomez

Recently pop singer Selena Gomez revealed that she went through kidney transplant Salena who was suffering from autoimmune disease namely Lupus received kidney from her good friend Francia Raisa.

Lupus is a disease that affects more women than men. Nine out of 10 patients are women in lupus cases.

What is Lupus?  Lupus is Latin name refers to wolf. It is named after wolf because when the disease did not have any treatment, it would eat the skin away like wolf, leaving scars and damage.

Lupus is a chronic, autoimmune disease where the body cannot differentiate between its own healthy tissues and body invaders.  Lupus is of two types – Discoid lupus that affects skin. Systemic lupus erythematosus or SLE harms skin, joint, kidney, heart and brain. It can be fatal (Source: NKF)

Skin, joints and kidneys are the commonly affected parts and the chronic condition starts slowly and will be there for many years if there is no treatment. Lupus is common in Asian, Hispanic, dark and brown skin people than in white. There is no cure but the treatments can control the disease.

When lupus is affecting kidney, it is known as Lupus nephritis. In this condition inflammation of the nephrons happens. Nephrons function is filtering the blood to remove waste and thus, helps in balancing amount of fluid in the body.

What are lupus symptoms?

• Unexplained, sudden swelling of body parts – ankles, feet, legs, gingers, arms, face especially around eyes
• Blood in the urine
• High blood pressure
• Foaminess in the urine
• Increased urination
• Joint pain, rashes, fatigue and feeling lousy and lethargic
• It can also affect bone density, heart, liver, pancreas, and brain

Why Selena had to undergo kidney transplant?

In Selena’s case reports say that she was battling with lupus for many years and she went through chemotherapy too. She took time off to deal with depression and anxiety which is associated with chronic pain. As per Dr. Montgomery, Director of Transplant Institute at NYU Langone Health, sometimes it comes to a point where lupus damages kidneys and either one or both need to be replaced. In Selena’s case, probably this could be the reason. Lupus attacks the own organs and tissues and it can affect the entire body system.

Medications and treatments for lupus:

While there is no permanent cure for this condition, the following drugs are used to treat the inflammation and lupus symptoms: Anti malarial drugs, NSAID, Synthetic steroids – that reduces swelling, reduces muscle and joint pain, Immunosuppressive medications to suppress immune system,  DHEA DHEA – a mild hormone that is used for treating mild to moderate lupus (hair loss, joint pain, fatigue, dysfunction (memory loss, multitasking difficulty etc).

As per John Hopkin’s Lupus center those who receive anti-malarial drugs in early stages of Lupus then they live longer than those who are not.

Treatments for lupus depends on how severe is the condition. In extreme cases patient may have to go through chemotherapy, dialysis and kidney transplant.

Diet for Lupus condition: Many people who has lupus may lead a normal life with some chronic pain. Those who are diagnosed with lupus should stop consuming highly saturated fats. Instead foods that boost kidney health should be consumed – low fat milk, cheese, tofu, beans, calcium rich food, green leafy vegetables such as palak, spinach, fenugreek and broccoli are good. Calcium supplements and Vitamin D helps too.

According to medical science, half of all systemic lupus cases one can see lupus attacking major organs such as lungs, heart, kidneys or brain. In case of kidney lupus person may has to undergo dialysis till he or she gets a kidney donor (for replacement). The wait depends – sometime donor may be lucky with a friend or family member may be willing to be a live donor. In case of Selena it was her friend who came to rescue her life!

References;

1. https://www.hopkinslupus.org
2. https://www.forbes.com/
3. https://resources.lupus.org