KRIS Aquino welcomed the New Year with her health continuing to falter, and another autoimmune disease manifesting itself — lupus — but the actress-host remained steadfast in her faith and vowed to never give up amid the “more complex” challenges to her health.
On Instagram, Aquino shared a three-part video documenting her struggle with her active rare autoimmune diseases, such as her Churg Strauss / EGPA and Crest Syndrome. Aquino then disclosed that she is already exhibiting symptoms of SLE, or systemic lupus erythematosus, the most common form of lupus.
“I cried nonstop when I got my blood panel results,” she wrote, and which was shown in one of the videos where she narrated how she had not been feeling well even before Thanksgiving in the United States, where she is seeking treatment for her autoimmune diseases.
“It’s highly likely based on my ANA count (blood panel), my high inflammatory numbers, my anemia, my now constant elevated blood pressure at night, and the consistent appearance of ‘butterfly rash’ on my face that I’m at the initial stage of SLE, or what is commonly known as lupus,” she further said.
According to the US-based Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), SLE is an autoimmune disease in which “the immune system attacks its own tissues, causing widespread inflammation and tissue damage in the affected organs.”
As she shared glimpses of her condition for the first time since the start of the year, Aquino promised to her loved ones that she wouldn’t be a “wimp” in her treatment, even if it is taking a toll on her health.
“We have a merciful and loving God who hears our prayers. Our battle has become more complex but I promised my sons and sisters that I wouldn’t be a wimp,” she said. “Bawal pa ring sumuko. Tuloy ang laban.
In another posts, Aquino shared glimpses of herself getting treated by medical professionals in what seemed to be an “explanation and answer” to what her autoimmune diseases had put her through.
In August last year, Aquino expressed hope of healing despite her painful medical treatments, though she acknowledged that while she is finally on the “correct path to remission,” she still has a “long way to go.”
Aquino, who now lives in California, is accompanied by her sons Josh and Bimby, though sometimes Batangas vice governor Mark Leviste, her former boyfriend, could be seen in the background. (Hannah Mallorca © Philippine Daily Inquirer)
