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Cindy E: Morphea

My name is Cindy and I am thirty-three years old. I have morphea, which is a form of localized scleroderma.

I have only recently been told that this is the disease that has bothered me since the age of six. My mother took me to the doctor as a child. She was told I have a childhood skin disorder.

I have several scars from the affected areas that I had as a child. The scars started off small, slightly discolored and round. They all turned white, hard and scaly. It took at least ten years for them to fade and turn into slightly depressed, darkened skin. They look more like a burn scar.

What bothers me now are the new areas that are now affected. I noticed new white spots on my right breast. It had been more than a decade with no new signs of any discolored skin. I now have an area that grew much faster and larger than any of the marks I had as a child. My dermatologist is using a topical steroid cream to control the spreading. He has advised me to see a rheumatologist.

I also suffer from joint pain, headaches, and lack of energy. I have not had any blood work or biopsies yet.

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ISN Artist: Sherrill Knaggs (In Loving Memory)

Sherrill Knaggs, ISN Artist, created the digital photo to illustrate the story on this page. Sherrill lived in New Zealand. Her story was featured in ISN's book, Voices of Scleroderma Volume 2.

ISN Story Editor: Judith Thompson Devlin

Judith Thompson Devlin is the ISN Story Editor for this story. She is also lead editor of the ISN's wonderful Voices of Scleroderma book series!

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