Selena Gomez along with her foundation have made a donation to the University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine to support lupus research. The Selena Gomez Fund for Lupus Research will back and support a pilot research program that will focus on treating the complications that come with the chronic inflammatory disease, which currently has no cure and it is affecting more than 1.5 million Americans.

The singer who has been raising awareness about lupus for quite some time released a statement saying: “I continue to be optimistic about the progress being made in lupus research and am proud to support the promising work at the Keck School of Medicine. I am hopeful for the millions of us around the world that may benefit from this.”

Janos Peti-Peterdi, professor of physiology and biophysics at the Keck School of Medicine also released a statement about partnering with the star and said he aims to help people suffering with the disease lead better lives.

“We are extremely pleased to partner with Selena in her efforts to promote awareness and medical research toward a much-needed cure for lupus,” he said.

“Complications from systemic lupus cause serious damage and we are hopeful that our research, with Selena’s support, will help those affected by this disease lead full, healthy lives.”

In 2015 the singer revealed to Billboard magazine that she had been struggling with some health complications because of lupus and it makes sense as to why she would back this research. She was diagnosed with the disease back in 2010 and kept it a secret until 2013. It was then that she revealed that she had undergone chemotherapy treatment to help with the symptoms of the disease, and recently at the end of last year took time off to deal with similar issues.

“As many of you know, around a year ago I revealed that I have lupus, an illness that can affect people in different ways. I’ve discovered that anxiety, panic attacks and depression can be side effects of lupus, which can present their own challenges,” she said.

“I want to be proactive and focus on maintaining my health and happiness and have decided that the best way forward is to take some time off. Thank you to all my fans for your support. You know how special you are to me, but I need to face this head on to ensure I am doing everything possible to be my best. I know I am not alone by sharing this, I hope others will be encouraged to address their own issues,” she said in the statement.

We are so proud of Selena and hope that this research can bring them closer to finding a cure.

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