Cyndi Lauper Plays With Puppies While Talking About Her Journey With Plaque Psoriasis

No treats? None? Not even a dog biscuit? Nothing? Any treats in my leopard coat? In the pocket? Anybody check? Hi, I'm Cyndi Lauper, and I'm going to play with puppies and answer questions. But mostly, I think play with puppies. ♪♪ Well, I am now. I like dogs and cats, and if they had my druthers, I would like them all together. I like animals. My husband's allergic to cats, and I have two pugs, and he only wanted one dog, but since they were small, I thought he wouldn't notice. He did tell me today not to come home with another puppy. I guess I'm a dog person. Puppies! Come on, guys. Hello. Oh, it's playtime. Come on, playin'. Playin'. Whoa. All right. What's your question? Plaque psoriasis is a chronic autoimmune and inflammatory disease that can cause thick, scaly patches to develop on the surface of your skin. Psoriasis is not contagious, but can be painful and uncomfortable. I stopped doing stuff. When I did work, I covered up everything. I was wearing tight net to cover stuff, and then when you took the net off, you had, like, skin all over the floor. It was a struggle. It also weakened me. That's something you don't want. At first, it was on my scalp. Then I realized it was psoriasis. When I went to the doctor, the psoriasis started to spread. Then I really needed someone who just specialized in psoriasis. The first thing I did was to find a dermatologist that specialized in psoriasis. Discovered my options, and I'm now on a biologic, Cosentix. It's helped a lot. And I also, through Novartis, was able to talk to other patients, and it made me feel less isolated, and that I had a chance to manage this disease as opposed to having something that was totally unmanageable. One day, I just couldn't take it anymore, so I called the doctor, practically crying, and he said, Zen, you have options, come in. Let's talk about it. For me, Cosentix seemed like the better way to go for me. When I was sick with it, and I did not have it managed, I felt quite alone. Most people don't talk about it, so it was an opportunity to help. The more you know about it, the less alone you feel. The more you know about it, the more you can manage it. I recommend you go to the website, cosentix.com backslash Cindy. Get more information, hear people's stories, because the one thing they did that empowered me was they didn't give up, and you can't give up. And you don't have to be feeling bad about it. You can actually do something about it, and you have options. People with plaque psoriasis on the scalp are four times more likely to get psoriatic arthritis. People with psoriasis on the nails are three times more likely to get psoriatic arthritis. And that was news to me. I think the most important thing is that you find a doctor that you can talk to, and that you write questions down before you get there, because information is power. I hope people take advantage of this information and help yourself. That's why I decided to talk about it, because I thought that I could help. Mostly you feel like you're alone, and you're not alone. Honestly, there's eight million of us in this country alone. Cosentix works for me, but everyone is so different. You have to really look at your options and get the right thing for you. When I met the other patients, the big thing was that they didn't give up. You can't give up. And when you're at your worst, you kind of feel like, oh, what's the sense, you know? You have to just continue to try and advocate for yourself and talk to other people, other patients, and see what goes on for them. Thank you to North Shore Animal League America for allowing me to meet these puppies. And they're adoptable, all of them. And they're all cute. So pretty. Look at you, yeah. Well, okay. Indications. Cosentix, Secukinumab, is a prescription medicine used to treat people six years of age and older with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis, PSO, that involves large areas or many areas of the body and who may benefit from taking injections or pills, systemic therapy, or phototherapy, treatment using ultraviolet or UV light alone, or with systemic therapy. People two years of age and older with active psoriatic arthritis, PSA. Adults with active ankylosing spondylitis, AS. Adults with active non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis, NRXPA. And objective signs of inflammation. People four years of age and older with active enthesitis-related arthritis, ERA. Adults with moderate to severe hydrodinitis superativa, HS. Important safety information. Do not use Cosentix if you have had a severe allergic reaction to Secukinumab or any of the other ingredients in Cosentix. See the medication guide for a complete list of ingredients. What is the most important information I should know about Cosentix? Cosentix is a medicine that affects your immune system. Cosentix may increase your risk of having serious side effects, such as infections. Cosentix may lower the ability of your immune system to fight infections and may increase your risk of infections. Some people have had serious infections while taking Cosentix, including tuberculosis, TB, and infections caused by bacteria, fungi, or viruses. Some people have died from these infections. Your doctor should check you for TB before starting treatment with Cosentix. If your doctor feels that you are at risk for TB, you may be treated with medicine for TB before you begin treatment with Cosentix and during treatment with Cosentix. Your doctor should watch you closely for signs and symptoms of TB during treatment with Cosentix. Do not use Cosentix if you have an active TB infection. Before starting Cosentix, tell your doctor if you are being treated for an infection, have an infection that does not go away or that keeps coming back, have TB or have been in close contact with someone with TB, think you have an infection or have symptoms of an infection, such as fevers, sweats, or chills, muscle aches, cough, shortness of breath, blood in your phlegm, weight loss, warm, red, or painful skin or sores on your body, diarrhea or stomach pain, burning when you urinate, or urinate more often than normal. After starting Cosentix, call your doctor right away if you have any signs of infection listed above. Do not use Cosentix if you have any signs of infection unless you are instructed to by your doctor. What are the possible side effects of Cosentix? Cosentix may cause serious side effects, including serious allergic reactions. Serious allergic reactions can occur. Get emergency medical help right away if you get any of the following symptoms, feeling faint, swelling of your face, eyelids, lips, mouth, tongue, or throat, trouble breathing or throat tightness, chest tightness, skin rash or hives, red, itchy bumps. If you have a severe allergic reaction, do not give another injection of Cosentix. Inflammatory bowel disease. New cases of inflammatory bowel disease or flare-ups can happen with Cosentix and can sometimes be serious. If you have inflammatory bowel disease, ulcerative colitis or Crohn's disease, tell your doctor if you have worsening disease symptoms during treatment with Cosentix or develop new symptoms of stomach pain or diarrhea. Severe skin reactions that look like eczema can happen during treatment with Cosentix from days to months after your first dose and can sometimes lead to hospitalization. Your doctor may temporarily stop treatment with Cosentix if you develop severe skin reactions. Tell your doctor if you have any of the following signs or symptoms, redness or rash, itching, small bumps or patches, your skin is dry or feels like leather, blisters on the hands or feet that ooze or become crusty or skin peeling. The most common side effects of Cosentix include cold symptoms, diarrhea, and upper respiratory tract infections. These are not all the possible side effects of Cosentix. Call your doctor for medical advice about side effects. Before using Cosentix, tell your doctor if you have any of the conditions or symptoms listed above for infections. Have inflammatory bowel disease, Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis. Are allergic to latex. The needle cap on the Cosentix Sensoreddy pen and 150 milligram per milliliter and 75 milligram per 0.5 milliliter pre-filled syringes contains latex. Have recently received or are scheduled to receive an immunization vaccine. People who take Cosentix should not receive live vaccines. Children should be brought up to date with all vaccines before starting Cosentix. Have any other medical conditions and all the medicines you take, including prescription and over-the-counter medicines, vitamins and herbal supplements. Keep a list of your medicines to show your healthcare provider and pharmacist when you get a new medicine. Are pregnant or plan to become pregnant. It is not known if Cosentix can harm your unborn baby. You and your doctor should decide if you will use Cosentix. Are breastfeeding or plan to breastfeed. It is not known if Cosentix passes into your breast milk. You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA. Visit www.fda.gov slash MedWatch or call 1-800-FDA-1088. Please see full prescribing information, including medication guide.