Millions of eyes will soon be on gymnast Suni Lee, 21, as she flips and twists on the uneven bars and flares her vault at the upcoming 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, her second-straight Olympic games.
And while she makes it look easy, Lee, who won the gold medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics in gymnastics all-around, has had her share of health challenges. She was diagnosed with a kidney condition in early 2023 and recently opened up about living with atopic dermatitis through a partnership with Lilly, an official sponsor of Team USA.
“We’re sponsoring seven Olympic athletes who really share – a connection to Lilly’s work to make life better. For some, it’s a passion for health, and for others, it’s an experience—directly or through a loved one—with a health condition Lilly helps treat,” says Mark Genovese, MD, Senior Vice President of Immunology Development at Lilly, in an interview with TDD.
Gymnast Simone Biles will be featured in ads for tirzepatide (Mounjaro), as her mom has Type 2 diabetes. In addition to sponsoring Team USA, Lilly is partnering with the LA28 Olympic and Paralympic Games and is an official Team USA partner in prescription medicine and health equity through 2028.
“Suni Lee has been kind enough to be very transparent about her own disease course and willing to partner with us to discuss the implications of developing eczema or atopic dermatitis, particularly when you’re younger,” he says.
Lee was diagnosed with eczema at a very young age. “She talked about her own course, how difficult it was with the initial symptoms and the challenges that she and other adolescents and young adults face, particularly given how prevalent this condition is,” Dr. Genovese says. “It impacts their emotional and physical development. You have symptoms of dry and flaky skin and a profoundly itchy rash that is visible, and pain and discomfort that comes from that,” he says.
There can also be a social stigma. “One of the things that we’re trying to highlight is the need to see a dermatologist to get the right diagnosis and discuss treatment options,” he says.
Proper treatment can reduce social stigma. “There are fewer inflammatory ramifications for the patient, and overall quality of life improves with treatment,” he says.
Health equity plays a role as not all patients have equal access to dermatologists and medications, and the newest iteration of Lilly’s Get Better campaign focuses on skin health and disparities experienced by patients of color with skin conditions.
Julie Block is the President and CEO of the National Eczema Association. She participated in a media conference with Lee. “She talked about the isolation that she felt as a young girl and as an athlete with eczema,” Block says.
It doesn’t have to feel like this, she says. “There are 31 million people in this country alone with eczema, and there is a community where they can tap in for support, for education, for understanding,” Ms. Block says. “There are many options today to help patients manage their disease, live a very high quality of life, and participate in the Olympics.”
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