Marci Franklin, 41, got her psoriasis under control several years ago and got healthier.

She's losing weight, exercising and riding her bicycle again — 16 miles a day five to six days a week.

She owes the turnaround, she says, to injections that suppress her immune system. Now she works nationally to tell other people with psoriasis that there's help and support through a program called "Fit in Your Skin," sponsored by the National Psoriasis Foundation.

"There are people out there with psoriasis and they're at risk for diabetes, heart problems," Franklin said. "There's help for them. They're not alone."

'ALMOST UNBEARABLE'

Psoriasis often is mistakenly dismissed as a cosmetic, inconvenient condition, Franklin said, and not life-threatening. She was 10 years old when small spots of psoriasis appeared on her chest. The condition worsened over the years, spreading to her scalp, which was difficult to cover.

"In college, it flared to the point where it was almost unbearable," she said.

The Psoriasis Foundation describes psoriasis as an autoimmune disease that causes a scaly thickening of the skin, mostly in adults, but sometimes in children. It can be mild. But it's not uncommon for people to have 60 percent to 75 percent coverage of their body. It often brings on psoriatic arthritis, a joint disease also caused by an errant immune system.

About 30 percent of cases appear to be genetic. But some cases appear without any reason.

It's not contagious. There's no cure, but medications can ease the severity.

Franklin said the disease became a health problem when out of self-consciousness, she locked herself away, going out only for work and supplies.

She put on weight, reaching 240 pounds on her 5-foot-6-inch frame.

That put her at risk for diabetes and cardiovascular disease. The risk is higher when stress and depression kicks in, she said.

"Mine was 25 percent coverage," Franklin said. "Can you imagine that? It's ugly, messy, the dry skin can crack and bleed."

Dr. Paul Yamauchi, a dermatologist and member of the board of the National Psoriasis Foundation, said Franklin's case is common.

"It's not only a cosmetic disease, it's being overweight, depression, diabetes, high blood pressure, stress, arthritis," Yamauchi said from Santa Monica, Calif.

"People become depressed couch potatoes and they eat more as a result of their depression, and that in turn leads to overweight," he said. "As an autoimmune disease it causes a lot of inflammation which causes factors that can lead to cardiovascular disease."

FOUR INJECTIONS A YEAR

That's where Franklin says she was when she joined a double-blind study for the drug Stelara five years ago. "So I didn't know if I had the drug or a placebo," she said. "But my psoriasis cleared up almost immediately. I stayed on it until it was approved and a year ago, I just kept using it.

"The drugs are so powerful, so wonderful. I take four injections a year and I'm completely free."

She added, "For me, I can go out without being stared at; it's freeing."

Franklin joined a gym — complete with tank tops and workout clothes. She began riding her bicycle again. She lost about 60 pounds.

About two years ago, her dermatologist introduced her to the Psoriasis Foundation, which was putting together "Fit in Your Skin," a support program for people with psoriasis.

Franklin's testimony impressed the foundation, and she was chosen as one of four national program leaders.

She went to New York where she was one of four people who appeared with celebrity trainer Jackie Warner, demonstrating how to stay fit despite psoriasis. It launched in spring of 2010. The "Fit in Your Skin" website includes the testimonies and stories, one of which is Franklin's.

SIDE EFFECTS

One of the supporters of the "Fit In Your Skin" program is Janssen Biotech Inc., maker of Stelara, the drug used by Franklin. 

Yamauchi said no medicines work for everyone, and some work with varying degrees of success. But there are enough immune suppressant medications that people are likely to find one that works for them.

The side effects can be becoming prone to contagious diseases that would be handled by a normal immune system.

Franklin says she hasn't had trouble with side effects.

"Every drug has side effects," she said. "But nothing is as bad as the psoriasis."

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Jackie Hutcherson, health editor

St. Louis Post-Dispatch

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St. Louis, Mo. 63101-1099

Email • jhutcherson@post-dispatch.com

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The story was corrected at 2:33 p.m. Dec. 1, 2011, omitting the incorrect statement that read "The National Psoriasis Foundation is a member of the National Institutes of Health."