About Histiocytosis
Histiocytosis is a rare blood disease that is caused by an excess of white blood cells called histiocytes. The histiocytes cluster together and can attack the skin, bones, lungs, liver, spleen, gums, ears, eyes and/or the central nervous system and brain. The disease can range from limited involvement that spontaneously regresses to progressive multi-organ involvement that can be chronic, debilitating, and life threatening.
Recent research is beginning to point to histiocytosis as an autoimmune disorder, though historically it was thought to be similar to cancer and has been treated by oncologists with chemotherapy. The vast majority of people diagnosed with histiocytosis are children under the age of ten, but it is also found in adults of all ages.
Histiocytosis affects roughly 1 in 200,000 children born each year in the United States. It is so rare that it is known as an "orphan disease", meaning it strikes too few people to generate government-supported research. Funds raised by events like Hike For A Cure and by the Histio Cure Foundation have significantly changed this equation in recent years. For more information on histiocytosis click here.
In 2011 a group of deeply committed parents founded The Histio CURE Foundation (HCF) with the intent of fundraising to support medical research towards finding a cure for histiocytosis. HCF is led by a group of volunteers, each impacted by histiocytosis – some as parents of histio children, others as adult histio patients. Administrative costs are covered separately so that 100% of your donations go directly towards medical research into a cure for this disease.
