For the sixth time, the JL Lyme Support Society is teaming up with local musicians to host the Lyme-Aid fundraiser.
This year, however, Lyme sufferers have backing to some of their long-standing claims that the provincial medical system is poorly equipped to deal with the disease.
A story in last month's B.C. Medical Journal revealed that 221 cases of the disease were diagnosed in 2007 by physicians surveyed for a study, but only 13 cases were reported. It also reported that 60 per cent of respondents were not aware that erythema migrans (a bulls-eye shaped skin rash) is diagnostic for Lyme Disease, without any other testing required.
“While there is no consensus on cause of persistent symptoms in some people after appropriate treatment for LD, it is clear these patients might benefit from a more co-ordinated model of diagnosis and care,” wrote the study’s authors.
The Lyme-Aid event takes place May 9 at the Victoria Event Centre, 1415 Broad St. Performers include Katie Schaan, Ellisa Hartman, Georgia Murray and Genevieve Rainey. Funds raised will support Lyme disease sufferer Jean-Luc Giroux’s treatment costs in the United States.
Doors open at 8 p.m. Tickets are $12.
rholmen@vicnews.com