May is Lupus Awareness Month! It's an opportunity for the lupus community to join together across the country to raise funds and awareness of the physical, emotional, and economic impact of lupus. Lupus Awareness Month is observed in May and aims to increase understanding amongst the general public. What is Lupus Lupus is a disease that occurs when your body's immune system attacks your own tissues and organs (autoimmune disease). Inflammation caused by lupus can affect many different body systems — including your joints, skin, kidneys, blood cells, brain, heart, and lungs. Autoimmunity” means your immune system cannot tell the difference between these foreign invaders and your body’s healthy tissues (“auto” means “self”). As a result, it creates autoantibodies that attack and destroy healthy tissue. These autoantibodies cause inflammation, pain, and damage in various parts of the body. Info .