Ava DuVernay

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Ava DuVernay is an American filmmaker and film distributor. She won the directing award in the U.S. dramatic competition at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival for her second feature film Middle of Nowhere, becoming the first black woman to win the award

She is the creator and Executive Producer of Queen Sugar, she chose to give the character Violet (known as ‘Aunt Vi’) the autoimmune disease lupus and revealed for the first time that she too had lupus.

She added “I’ve been in remission for 20 years, but I did want to make sure that we create spaces to talk about it. We wanted to really give that chronic illness to Vi and show you can live and you can battle through it, you can continue to thrive, but you have to manage it.”

June Easton

Actress June Easton died on 2nd April 2005 aged 72 from complications of lupus. She was the wife of actor Robert Easton. She was a dialect coach at her husband’s firm “Henry Higgins of Hollywood inc”.

Robert Easton is considered one of the top dialect coaches in the film industry, teaching over 80 different dialects. June appeared in several films with her husband including: Paint your wagon, Tai-pan and Timber Tramps.

Ayda Field

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Gwen Field, mother of Ayda Field (who is married to Robbie Williams) has lupus. As well as lupus Gwen also suffers from Parkinsons and cervical cancer.

During lockdown in May 2020 Ayda revealed more devastating news. "My mum in January was diagnosed with Stage 2 Cervical Cancer and it had spread outside the cervix and was a very aggressive tumour so alongside her Parkinson's and her Lupus was this cancer battle and because the cancer was so big they decided that she needed to immediately go into chemo and radiation daily and have surgery," Ayda explained.

“When the pandemic hit it was very scary because my mum with Lupus and Parkinson's and cancer, at 70 years old is prime for some bad things happening so she was going to the hospital every day for these treatments and I just remember every day thinking 'Is she going to pick something up? Is this where it all ends?'" she added.

Cindy Frey

Cindy Frey, wife of Glen Frey (formerly of the band the Eagles, deceased 2015), has lupus.

She said "Lupus has been raging through our population of young women, cutting short the opportunity for them to reach their full potential, often it targets the very driven woman who has so much to give. Lupus LA has been a front-runner in the fight to cure this disease by raising funds for research and supporting patients."

Hugh Gaitskell

Hugh Gaitskell was a British politician, leader of the Labour Party from 1955. He died after a sudden attack of SLE in 1963, aged 56, and left an opening for Harold Wilson in the party leadership.

The abrupt and unexpected nature of his death led to speculation that foul play was involved, the most popular conspiracy theory involving a KGB plot to ensure that Wilson (supposedly a KGB agent himself) became prime minister. This claim was given new life by Peter Wright’s controversial 1987 book Spycatcher

Yūko Gotō

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Yūko Gotō a Japanese voice actress and singer. In direct contrast to her cute-and-vulnerable moé typecasting, Yūko in real life is a devotee of biker culture who dresses and acts as such when not working, right down to her motorcycle.

This is parodied in the 23rd episode of Lucky Star, in which she appears as a masculine Bōsōzoku-styled character of herself called Gotouza, a nickname given to her by fellow voice actor Tomokazu Sugita.

In 2012, she announced that she is suffering from idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura and systemic lupus erythematosus. .

Selena Gomez

In 2015 Selena Gomez said she was receiving chemotherapy after being diagnosed with lupus. Concerns about her health were first raised in 2013, when she cancelled a tour of Asia and Australia.She later sought treatment at the Dawn at the Meadows rehab facility, with her representatives denying she was dealing with substance abuse. But the singer has revealed her break was "really about" her lupus diagnosis, adding: "I could have had a stroke."

In an interview with Billboard, the actress-singer, explained that she underwent chemotherapy for the autoimmune disease amid intense fan and media speculation (some reports said she was in rehab for addiction, adding insult to injury) about why she was keeping a low profile.“I was diagnosed with lupus, and I’ve been through chemotherapy. That’s what my break was really about. I could’ve had a stroke,” Gomez told the magazine. “I wanted so badly to say, ‘You guys have no idea. I’m in chemotherapy. You’re a–holes.’ I locked myself away until I was confident and comfortable again.”

Ian Harding

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Actor Ian Harding appears as Ezra Fitz in the USA TV series, Pretty Little Liars. He’s also a huge animal rights activist and raises money for lupus in his spare time.

Ian Harding’s mother, Mary, was diagnosed with lupus in 1994, after graduating with a degree in nursing from Walter Reed Military Medical Centre in Virginia. Ian was 7 at the timeand unaware that the disease was life-threatening. Neither side of his family had a history of lupus.

Despite the obstacles Mary faced, she continued to work full-time as a cardiology nurse at Walter Reed. She was determined not to let her illness affect her children’s lives. Mary was in full support of Ian choosing to act with his life but urged him to attend a university where he could study acting technique.

Melissa Joan Hart

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Actor Melissa, internationally known for playing Sabrina the teenage witch, is an Ambassador for Lupus LA.

She explained her support for lupus saying “I had no clue what lupus was. I had just celebrated my wedding and was in the process of making new friends. I became fast friends with my dear friend Kellie Martin and learned that she had lost her only sister to this autoimmune disease. This news absolutely devastated me. All through my life I have thanked God for keeping my family safe and healthy, unable to imagine my life if I was ever to lose one of them. I wanted her to know that I was not only willing to be there for her as a friend, but that I would try to help in any way possible.”

Click here for a video of Melissa talking about lupus and why she supports lupus causes.

Sally Hawkins

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Sally Hawkins, an English actress, is the recipient of numerous accolades including a Golden Globe Award and the Silver Bear for Best Actress and has been nominated for two Academy Awards.

Sally appeared in many films including: Star Wars, Godzilla, Paddington, the shape of water, Jane Eyre and Made in Dagenham. Also in TV programmes such as: Casualty, the Hollow Crown and Little Britain.

In 2018 Sally revealed that she has lupus. "I do get quite tired, but I don't let it stop me. I've been very lucky with it, for the most part. It comes in waves. I'm not crippled with it, like some people. I just have to be aware and take it steady."

Eva Ibbotson

The children's author  died on 20th October 2010, at the age of 85 at her home in Newcastle. She was best known for the Amazon adventure tale Journey to the River Sea, winner of the Nestlé children's gold award and shortlisted for the Carnegie medal, and for her funny, magical stories for younger children, including The Secret of Platform 13 and The Great Ghost Rescue.

Although she had battled poor health in latter years and was suffering from lupus, Eva continued to write. The last of her "romps", The Ogre of Oglefort, was published just a few months prior to her death and was shortlisted for the Guardian children's fiction prize and the Roald Dahl funny prize. "The thing you have to do is keep writing, the habit is too ingrained, you can't stop," she said at the time.

Jess Impiazzi

Actress, Author and Reality TV star Jess Impiazzi was diagnosed with lupus in July 2023. Jess’s crippling symptoms started in January, one month after she had her breast implants replaced when one of them ruptured.

She said "My body was just completely failing me and I couldn’t get any answers. I was tired all the time, aching all over and then this angry rash appeared on my chest and face. One day I started coughing up blood, which was incredibly scary. I thought it was stomach cancer. Then I started panicking that it was multiple autoimmune."

Carrie Ann Inaba

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Carrie Ann Inaba is an American television personality, dancer, choreographer, actress, and singer. She is best known for her work on ABC TV's Dancing with the Stars, as Fook Yu in Austin Powers in Goldmember, and as a current co-host of the CBS Daytime talk show, The Talk.

In September 2019 Carrie Ann said that she only recently learned sh had lupus as her doctor forgot to tell her. “It’s so weird," she said. "I was diagnosed with autoimmune six years ago, but my doctor didn’t tell me I had lupus,” she continued. “I was having a colonoscopy and I saw my chart [read] lupus and I was like, ‘This is not my chart,’ and they were like, ‘You have lupus.’”

“So my doctor had forgotten to tell me,” she added.

Read Carrie Ann’s blog the Invisible Warrior.

Michael Jackson

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From CBS News ”It reveals a rare court affidavit detailing several skin conditions that Jackson treats including Jackson’s use of a powerful bleaching cream called Benoquin, because, according to his maid, “he does not like being black and he feels that blacks are not liked as much as people of other races.”

The affidavit also shows that Jackson was diagnosed with vitiligo and discoid lupus, which causes skin blotches”.

Sam Jay

Samaria Johnson better known as Sam Jay, is an American comedian and writer. She is best known as a writer for Saturday Night Live (2017–present), her Netflix comedy special 3 in the Morning (2020), and as the co-creator and co-star of the HBO comedy series PAUSE with Sam Jay (2021–present).

Sam was diagnosed with lupus aged 20, a disease that had mother died from, she says:

“I just got really sick out the blue, and I didn't know what was going on with me., I felt like I had a flu. And then it was like I was incapacitated. I couldn't go from my bed to the bathroom without being out of breath. I couldn't shower. And then I went to the doctor”

Click here for the full interview with Sam talking about lupus and how it affects her.

Robert Wood "Woody" Johnson IV

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Robert Wood "Woody" Johnson IV (born April 12, 1947) is an American businessman, philanthropist, and diplomat who is currently serving as United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom. He is a great-grandson of Robert Wood Johnson I (co-founder of Johnson & Johnson). Alongside his brother, Christopher, he is the owner of the New York Jets of the National Football League.

Johnson became involved in charitable organizations full-time in the 1980s. He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. His family has been affected by both lupus and juvenile diabetes, which motivated Johnson to take a role in raising funds to prevent, treat, and cure autoimmune diseases.

He has led efforts on Capitol Hill and at the National Institutes of Health to increase research funding for these diseases and personally contributed to causes related to diabetes, after his daughter, Casey, was diagnosed with the disease. He started a research foundation, the Alliance for Lupus Research, after his daughter Jaime was found to have lupus.