Friendly Fire

This book deals with a fascinating set of diseases in which the immune system turns traitor and begins to attack the self. The attack may take many forms, culminating in serious skin disease, or disease affecting the joints, heart, lungs, kidneys, and central nervous system, to name only a few of the possibilities. The reader is given a short historical guide to these conditions, followed by a comprehensive description of the different cells and tissues which make up the normally functioning immune system. The factors involved in the development of autoimmune diseases are considered and the mechanisms by which they interact to cause these potentially lethal conditions are analysed. The authors go on to describe the enormous diversity of self-destructive diseases along with current types of treatment and the range of recent ideas about future therapy. Great care is taken to make even the most complex notions of immunology and inflammation easily accessible and comprehensible for the general reader. This book is intended for the general public who are either themselves or have a family member suffering from one of these diseases.