NEW YORK, Oct. 20, 2023 — Thousands of supporters will join together Saturday, October 21 at the Intrepid Museum (formerly called the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum) to celebrate the 20th Anniversary of the Lupus Research Alliance (LRA) 2023 New York City Walk with Us to Cure Lupus. Registration remains open through Walk Day at www.lupuswalknyc.org.
While the well-attended annual event is free, donations by Walkers and corporate sponsors such as GSK, Hospital for Special Surgery, Northwell Health, NFL Foundation, BTIG, Genentech, Aurinia, KPMG, RPW, NYU Langone, Columbia University Irving Medical Center and Montefiore Health System have already raised nearly $300,000 for lupus research as well as public awareness of the serious and commonly misdiagnosed autoimmune disease. That number is still climbing as Walkers continue to fundraise for lupus research.
The New York City Walk will also livestream on Instagram Live on LRA’s Instagram starting at 9:00 AM EST for the LRA’s Virtual Walk event, as well as for the community who can’t attend the Walk at the Intrepid Museum.
What the Walk Has Meant to People with Lupus
The Walk program connects people at live events as well as online, building a dedicated national and even international community that passionately believes in the power of research to find the cure. To date, the NYC Walk has raised over $11 million to fund the breakthroughs behind the development of more than a dozen investigational therapies for lupus. And the LRA’s clinical research affiliate, Lupus Therapeutics is collaborating with several biopharmaceutical companies to help conduct clinical studies of many potential therapies in development, including emerging cell therapy approaches like CAR-T, a potential curative treatment approach.
“It is a promising time in lupus research with two new medications approved for lupus in the last two years and many more exciting therapeutics in the development pipeline, many of which were enabled by LRA’s early research,” said Albert T. Roy, LRA President and CEO. “However, because every experience with the disease is so personal, more treatments are needed to allow every person living with lupus to become the best versions of themselves.”
Because the LRA’s Board of Directors covers all administrative and fundraising costs, 100 percent of these donations go directly to lupus research programs. Visit www.lupuswalknyc.org or Email lupuswalkNYC@lupusresearch.org for more information about the event.
Joining the Walk with Us to Cure Lupus program to raise funds is just one way to contribute to the lupus cause. LRA asks the lupus community to join its ManyOne Can campaign, inviting each person living with lupus or someone who simply cares to become one of the Many who are making a difference in advocating for more government research funding, educating others about lupus to improve early diagnosis, or taking part in clinical research. No one person or organization can conquer lupus alone, but together ManyOne Can!
About Lupus
Lupus is a chronic, complex autoimmune disease that affects millions of people worldwide. More than 90 percent of people with lupus are women, often striking during the childbearing years of 15-45. Blacks/African Americans, Hispanics, Asians, and Native Americans are at two to three times greater risk than Caucasians for developing lupus. In lupus, the immune system, meant to defend against infections, produces antibodies that mistakenly recognize the body’s own cells as foreign, prompting other immune cells to attack and potentially damage organs such as the kidneys, brain, heart, lungs, blood, skin, and joints.
About the Lupus Research Alliance
The Lupus Research Alliance is the largest non-governmental, non-profit funder of lupus research worldwide. The organization aims to transform treatment by funding the most innovative lupus research, fostering diverse scientific talent, and driving discovery toward better diagnostics, improved treatments and ultimately a cure for lupus. Because the Lupus Research Alliance’s Board of Directors funds all administrative and fundraising costs, 100% of all donations goes to support lupus research programs.
About Lupus Therapeutics
Lupus Therapeutics, the clinical research affiliate of the Lupus Research Alliance, aims to accelerate the development of curative treatments for all patients living with lupus. Lupus Therapeutics collaborates with academic institutions, biotechnology and pharmaceutical partners through the unprecedented Lupus Clinical Investigators Network (LuCIN) to drive rapid and meaningful progress in the treatment of lupus patients. The organization elevates the patient voice, engages community stakeholders, and strives for representation of the diverse lupus community in the clinical research process with the most innovative and renowned experts throughout North America.
