"Lyme disease is a silent epidemic in America. We want to alert and educate consumers about this disease, which is often misdiagnosed. Left untreated, it will become chronic and debilitating," said Leo J. Shea, III, PhD, President of the non-profit International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society (ILADS). "Tick-borne illnesses compromise your immune system and the diagnosis, which is largely based on symptoms, can be elusive unless a physician is Lyme-literate."
"A friend of mine in San Francisco was getting sicker and sicker with severe and progressive neurological illness. She was first diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, then ALS.....But she kept looking for possible explanations and, finally, was diagnosed with Lyme disease. Lyme disease?! I recalled that my twin sister in Upstate New York suffered from it years ago. I remember she was always tired, and achy, even though she looked just fine. So I never took it seriously, like most people, and I believed it was just an East Coast disease, if a real disease at all." Said Andy Abrahams Wilson Director of UNDER OUR SKIN. "What if my sister didn't persevere until she proved wrong those (like myself) who thought it was all in her head?"
Donna Weidel, President of Burgess Communications, adds, "I suffer from Lyme disease and from years of misdiagnosis. Finally I was tested for Lyme - and found a Lyme-literate doctor. Lyme is estimated to be growing faster than AIDS and has become a global health problem. This pro bono spot will draw more attention to the need for better diagnosis."
ILADS is a nonprofit, international, multi-disciplinary medical society, dedicated to the diagnosis and appropriate treatment of Lyme and its associated diseases. ILADS promotes understanding of Lyme and its associated diseases through research and education and strongly supports physicians and other health care professionals dedicated to advancing the standard of care for Lyme and its associated diseases.
Indianapolis Super Bowl ILADS Jumbotron - February 2012
