Newly Diagnosed: Taking the First Step on Your Journey
Becoming educated is a good place to start on your journey with ANCA vasculitis. Whether you are a patient or a caregiver, knowing as much as possible about the disease will help you be a more active participant in your or your loved one’s healthcare. Learn more below about ANCA vasculitis and its causes, symptoms, and prognosis.
Overview
Anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic autoantibody (ANCA) vasculitis is an autoimmune disease that causes blood vessels to swell. There are several types of ANCA vasculitis depending on the organs affected, and the symptoms vary accordingly. To learn more about ANCA vasculitis, click the button below.
Causes
In ANCA vasculitis, autoantibodies called anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic autoantibodies, or ANCAs, attack the cells lining the blood vessel. Most ANCA vasculitis patients either have high amounts of specific perinuclear (P-ANCA) antibodies or have detectable levels of cytoplasmic (C-ANCA) antibodies. To learn more about the causes of ANCA vasculitis, click the button below.
Prognosis
The prognosis of ANCA vasculitis is difficult to define because the disease can affect a variety of organs and body systems. The symptoms and potential associated diseases depend on which areas of the body it affects. In some cases, vasculitis can be cured quickly; in others, the disease can be long term. To learn more about prognosis of ANCA vasculitis, click the button below.
Symptoms
There are four types of ANCA vasculitis. In all of them, autoantibodies target white blood cells and trigger them to attach to and destroy the surrounding blood vessels. Symptoms vary based on which organs in the body are affected. To learn more about symptoms of ANCA vasculitis, click the button below.
