Welcome to Shannon's Page
Shannon Castorino
Shannon Castorino
Welcome and thank you for your time. As you might know, the fight against sarcoidosis is very important to me because my husband Joseph has recently been diagnosed.
Sarcoidosis is a rare, often chronic inflammatory disorder that causes the formation of granulomas, or clumps of inflammatory cells. This can occur in almost any organ in the body, most commonly affecting the lungs, lymph nodes, skin and eyes. While this disease affects as many as 200,000 Americans, there is currently no known cure and treatment options are limited and often ineffective.
In my husband's situation, his health had been failing over the course of the past three years. He was in and out of the ER with numerous visits to various specialists. He had a myriad of symptoms but nothing seemed to connect the dots. He developed seizures, lumps under his skin as well as growths in his nasal passages and sinuses. He began having frequent headaches, dizzy spells, fatigue, shortness of breath, and loss of smell and taste.
He was seen by his PCP, neurology, pulmonology, cardiology, and ENT for numerous tests. These included scopes, CT scans, MRI's, lung function tests and two biopsies. A CT scan of his head and throat showed enlarged lymph nodes around his heart and lungs. Further testing showed lymph nodes all over his body were enlarged!
After weeks of waiting, the results came back as Pulmonary Sarcoidosis, Sino Nasal Sarcoidosis and Cutaneous Sarcoidosis. He had granulomas growing in his lungs, sinuses, nasal passages and under the skin.
I have chosen to support the Foundation for Sarcoidosis Research (FSR) by fundraising for Team KISS!
KISS stands for Kick In to Stop Sarcoidosis, and that’s what you'll be doing by supporting my page. FSR is the leading nonprofit dedicated to finding a cure for this disease and improving care and treatment options for sarcoidosis patients. The funds all go directly to FSR and their programs for improving patient education, supporting patients and their caretakers, and of course, funding research to find better treatment options and one day, a cure.
Please consider helping me reach my goal. Together, we can Stop Sarcoidosis!
Thank you
Shannon
Sarcoidosis is a rare, often chronic inflammatory disorder that causes the formation of granulomas, or clumps of inflammatory cells. This can occur in almost any organ in the body, most commonly affecting the lungs, lymph nodes, skin and eyes. While this disease affects as many as 200,000 Americans, there is currently no known cure and treatment options are limited and often ineffective.
In my husband's situation, his health had been failing over the course of the past three years. He was in and out of the ER with numerous visits to various specialists. He had a myriad of symptoms but nothing seemed to connect the dots. He developed seizures, lumps under his skin as well as growths in his nasal passages and sinuses. He began having frequent headaches, dizzy spells, fatigue, shortness of breath, and loss of smell and taste.
He was seen by his PCP, neurology, pulmonology, cardiology, and ENT for numerous tests. These included scopes, CT scans, MRI's, lung function tests and two biopsies. A CT scan of his head and throat showed enlarged lymph nodes around his heart and lungs. Further testing showed lymph nodes all over his body were enlarged!
After weeks of waiting, the results came back as Pulmonary Sarcoidosis, Sino Nasal Sarcoidosis and Cutaneous Sarcoidosis. He had granulomas growing in his lungs, sinuses, nasal passages and under the skin.
I have chosen to support the Foundation for Sarcoidosis Research (FSR) by fundraising for Team KISS!
KISS stands for Kick In to Stop Sarcoidosis, and that’s what you'll be doing by supporting my page. FSR is the leading nonprofit dedicated to finding a cure for this disease and improving care and treatment options for sarcoidosis patients. The funds all go directly to FSR and their programs for improving patient education, supporting patients and their caretakers, and of course, funding research to find better treatment options and one day, a cure.
Please consider helping me reach my goal. Together, we can Stop Sarcoidosis!
Thank you
Shannon
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