Strong women fighting for their lung health
Lymphangioleiomyomatosis (LAM) is a rare disease (the mean±sd incidence of LAM per million female population between 2004 and 2008 was 0.31±0.058 cases per year in the USA, 0.23±0.076 in the UK and 0.37±0.26 in Switzerland [1]), which almost exclusively affects women at the stage of their lives where they may start to have children. The condition itself is characterised by the development of lung cysts formed from the proliferation of abnormal smooth muscle cells and chyle-filled cystic lesions in the lymphatic system. The main symptoms of LAM include breathlessness, wheeze, chest tightness and can include cough. Patients with LAM often experience one or more pneumothorax, particularly during pregnancy; and it is the development of these which may indicate a diagnosis of LAM [2].
The impact of LAM is huge: primarily women in the prime of their life with new families and their hopes and expectations for the future being limited by an attack on their lungs. One of the major issues surrounding LAM, as with many other rare diseases, is the lack of awareness amongst …