Special Call To
African-American Vitiligo Patients
Over the past 18 years, we have carried out basic genetic studies of vitiligo, begun with the urging and active participation of vitiligo patient groups, including VSI. Over 10,000 vitiligo patients around the world have taken part. The results have yielded extraordinary progress in understanding the epidemiology and biology of vitiligo. Accordingly, for the first time major drug companies are seriously pursuing vitiligo as a treatment target.
Thus far, our studies have mostly targeted Caucasians, simply because of the large numbers of patients we need for major genetic studies. We’ve also been able to extend our findings from Caucasians to Indian-Pakistani and Asian patients, who have enrolled in smaller numbers. However, we have not been able to extend our findings to African-Americans, simply because we haven’t been able to enroll enough patients from this important group in the USA.
Now, we hope to specifically target African-American enrollment, to understand whether the basic biology of vitiligo that we’ve outlined by studying Caucasians also pertains to individuals of African descent. Otherwise, advances in vitiligo testing and treatment may not be extensible to African-Americans. At the very least we need to enroll several hundred additional African-American vitiligo patients, and also a similar number of unrelated, unaffected African-American “controls”. We believe you are out there, among the membership of VSI. Won’t you please help by participating? There is no cost, all participant information is kept confidential, and you will be potentially helping yourself as well as other African-Americans who suffer from vitiligo.
Your personal information, by law,
will be kept private and will not be sold or disclosed.
Join with us to work for a vitiligo-free future!
Click here to download the questionnaire
Click Here to Read Research Updates on this Study
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