Lupus Research Foundation

Thank you for your support!

Our mission is to cure lupus in only a few short years. We have been moving towards this goal for several years and it is coming soon. 

Lupus can be life threatening. There is currently no cure. It can cause organ failure, joint pain, and fatigue. 90% of folks with lupus are women. It is more prevalent in people of color. They say that lupus more prevalent than AIDS and MS combined. 

Our founder, Regan Birr, has lupus. She was life-threateningly ill, with kidney disease caused by lupus, and received chemotherapy even though she didn’t have cancer, for 2.5 years. The chemo put her into remission and suppressed her over-active immune system. She still takes medication every day, and is driven to help find a cure.

We are racing against the clock for a cure so no other young person will have to go through that. Your support helps! 

For several years we have funded Dr. Timothy Niewold, Vice Chair of Research for the Hospital for Special Surgery. 

He is a world-renowned research rheumatologist and geneticist. He and his colleagues all believe a cure is in sight. 

With your support we can accelerate his research. Recently his work contributed to the development and trial of a drug by AstraZeneca that has received FDA approval. He currently is working, with his lab, on a predictive marker for lupus. This can give people the chance to take preventative meds. It will save lives. 

We are blessed to run the largest Professional-Amateur curling tournament in the world, “Lupus Spiel”.

The Lupus Spiel is our flagship event. It is held every year in Blaine, Minnesota, at Fogerty Arena Four Seasons Curling Club. It sees 300 participants, Olympic Curlers, local celebrities, and people from all over the metro area (and the world!) Supportive celebrities include Olympic Gold medalist Kevin Martin (Canada), Olympic Gold medalist John Shuster (USA), and Olympic Gold medalist Eve Muirhead (Great Britain). It provides great visibility of lupus, and education about the disease as well as a chance for our supporters to shine. 

Join us as we advance towards a cure for lupus. 

If you'd like more information about how you can support the foundation or Lupus Spiel, please contact Regan at:  720 470 8049 or reganbirr@gmail.com.

Thanks for your support!

Very truly yours,

Regan