Lupus Awareness Month is coming to Lubbock in a big way.

The Lupus Foundation of America, Lone Star Chapter and Lubbock Lupus Group will host the 6th Annual Lupus Awareness Event Saturday from 3 to 5 p.m. at Teddy Jack's (located at 7205 Milwaukee Ave.),

According to the event's Facebook page, a member of the Lubbock mayor's office will issue a statement to observe May as Lupus Awareness Month and World Lupus Day, which is May 10. The event will also feature a silent auction and purple balloon release.

Attendees are encouraged to wear purple.

Lupus is a chronic autoimmune disease where a person's own immune system attacks itself, affecting everything from a person's joints to their kidneys and heart. No direct cause for lupus has been discovered, though sunlight, infections and medication have been listed as triggers.

According to the Mayo Clinic, symptoms include: "Fatigue and fever, joint pain, stiffness and swelling, butterfly-shaped rash on the face that covers the cheeks and bridge of the nose, skin lesions that appear or worsen with sun exposure (photosensitivity), fingers and toes that turn white or blue when exposed to cold or during stressful periods (Raynaud's phenomenon), shortness of breath, chest pain, dry eyes, headaches, confusion and memory loss."

The World Lupus Day website says that some 5 million people across the world suffer from lupus.

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