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Saturday, September 19, 2009

Ten More Ways My Invisible Illnesses Are Visible #iiwk09

Day 116 - Seeing Other People
Here are some interesting facts about my "invisible illnesses" I thought I'd share with you. I discovered putting this post together that when it comes to the numbers, my illnesses are not so rare, unusual or invisible after all:
  1. According to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, "An estimated 245,225 people in the United States are living with, or are in remission from, leukemia."
  2. Research shows that late effects from cancer treatment are common in cancer survivors. The Candlelighters website reports that The Childhood Cancer Survivor Study, with a study population of over 10,000 survivors, found that 66% of survivors had at least one chronic health problem and 33% had multiple conditions.

  3. According to the Ready to Learn All About Hepatitis C website, it is estimated that 4 million people, about 2% of the U.S. population, is infected with Hepatitis C.
  4. The HCV Advocate reports that liver failure caused by Hepatitis C is the number one reason for liver transplants in the United States. They go on to inform that a liver transplant DOES NOT cure HCV, as the virus hides in other places in the body of the liver transplant recipient and migrates to the new liver after transplantation. Disease progression is often accelerated in liver transplant recipients.
  5. On the The National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse website it states that in 2007, over 23 million people, or roughly 8% of the population, lived with diabetes.
  6. The American Diabetes Association provides information on the direct and indirect costs of diabetes in the United States. People living with diabetes have, on average, an almost 2 1/2 times increase in their medical expenditures compare to persons without diabetes.
  7. Up to 1/3 of people living with chronic Hepatitis C infection develop Type 2 diabetes according to an article published in 2004 in the journal Current Diabetes Reports.
  8. According to the National Fibromyalgia Association, fibromyalgia is the most common pain disorder, affecting 10 million Americans, or about 3% of the population.
  9. Sleep apnea affects 18 million people in the United States, which is about 6% of the population. People living with fibromyalgia have a higher incidence of sleep disorders, including sleep apnea, explains WebMD. In addition, in overweight type 2 diabetics, researchers found that a whopping 86% had undiagnosed sleep apnea, with 53% of the participants having moderate to severe sleep apnea symptoms. Sleep apnea is associated with weight gain, high blood pressure, heart attack and stroke.
  10. Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) statistics show that "chronic, disabling conditions cause major limitations in activity for more than one of every 10 Americans, or 25 million people." That means chronic illness disables about 9% of the American populace.

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