06/04/2025
April is Sarcoidosis Awareness Month 💜
Sarcoidosis is known as
a “snowflake” disease
because it is so individualized.
The degree to which people experience it is very different and sometimes dependent on when and where in the body it is diagnosed, and how the disease presents may vary by gender and ethnic background.
There is no marker that helps
physicians actually diagnose sarcoidosis.
Diagnosing sarcoidosis is often a process of elimination. While a biopsy may confirm a diagnosis of sarcoidosis, it is not always definitive and, in some cases, a biopsy is not feasible.
One of the many odd things about sarcoidosis and, one of the things that makes it difficult to understand, let alone diagnose, is that the disease presents itself in a variety of ways. It also mimics other diseases. Patients can be told that they may have cancer, MS or lupus before they actually get their sarcoidosis diagnosis. It can sometimes take years before a patient gets the right diagnosis.
The disease can be acute, presenting with short lived symptoms that don’t require treatment at all, or sarcoidosis can be chronic in nature, impacting multiple organs
with the need for on-going treatment and monitoring. Chronic sarcoidosis is often defined as having active disease for more than 2-5 years.
Patients with sarcoidosis also respond differently to available treatment. One patient might do very well on a short course of corticosteroids, while another may do better with a non-steroid alternative.
For these reasons and more, we need to raise awareness about sarcoidosis and advocate for better research for treatment. One day with an improved understanding of the disease, we will find a cure!
(Source: American Thoracic Society, Foundation For Sarcoidosis Research,
The University of Minnesota)
