Special walkathon Aug 26 to raise awareness of LSE

KUCHING: A special walkathon will take place here on Aug 26, aimed at raising awareness of the Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) – a chronic disease that has affected more than 10,000 people in Malaysia over the past 30 years.

The ‘Walk-A-Payung Kuching 2017’ will be flagged off at the foyer of Kuching South City Council (MBKS) at 7.30am. From there, the participants will walk the 4.5km route covering Jalan Padungan, Jalan Central Timur, Jalan Ellis, Jalan Lumba Kuda and Jalan Tan Sri Datuk William Tan, before heading back to MBKS.

According to the Malaysian LSE Association ( PSLEM), there will also be a ‘Best Decorated Umbrella Competition’ in conjunction with the walk.

“Participants can bring along their ‘ payung’ (umbrellas) for the walk, if they choose to. The top three participants with the best decorated umbrellas stand to win attractive prizes,” said the association.

Participation is open and registration fee is RM50 per person, which covers a breakfast pack, one T-shirt, one umbrella and an e-certificate of participation.

Forms can be obtained by calling or sending WhatsApp text to Sazali via 013- 8111306, or emailing to fatiza.sazali@ gmail.com.

Closing date for form and fee submission is Aug 15.

“Information about the date, time and venue for the collection of T- shirts and umbrellas will be messaged or emailed to the registered participants, which should at least one week before the event,” said PSLEM, adding that further details can also be obtained via www.lupusmalaysia.org.

Adding on, the association said apart from raising public awareness of the SLE and also funds, the ‘Walk-A-Payung’ event would also serve as a for SLE patients and their families to engage in fun and healthy interactions with the public.

“Through the ‘Best Umbrella’ competition, everybody get to showcase their creativity as well.”

The SLE is an auto-immune, disabling and progressive disease of unknown cause where a patient’s body makes large quantities of blood proteins called antibodies that attack the patient’s own tissues.

The incidence of the disease among the Afro- Carribean communities is one in 250- 500 people; in China, it is one in 1,000 and in the US, it is one in 2,000. In Malaysia, PSLEM believes that there are many more sufferers who have yet to be properly diagnosed.

“SLE affects more women than men – the estimated ratio is nine females to one male. It has a high prevalence among young women of the childbearing age, giving rise to high socio- economic burden to sufferers and their families. As the sun aggravates the symptoms of SLE, the sufferers are strongly advised to stay out or protected from it; hence the rationale for the ‘Walk-a-Payung’ event.”

The PSLEM was established in 1994 by a group of doctors and SLE patients who wanted to help sufferers cope with and understand the disease better. It began with a core group of 10 committee members operating from a doctor’s office at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Hospital (HUKM) and later on, set up its secretariat at Jalan Utara in Petaling Jaya, Selangor.

From there, it established the Sandakan Chapter in 2004, before opening up the Penang Chapter in 2008, and the Kuching Chapter in 2009.

Currently, the PSLEM has 2,200 members.