The lived experience of having a rare medical disorder: Hermansky-Pudlak syndrome
Hermansky-Pudlak Syndrome is a rare form of albinism, affecting approximately one in 500,000 to one in 1,000,000 non-Hispanic individuals. The syndrome is more commonly found in Hispanics, where one in 18,00 individuals in Northwestern Puerto Rico are impacted. Because of the rarity of this chronic condition, patients often face challenges in their ability to cope with the diagnosis. A phenomenological study was conducted to explore the experience of individuals with this rare genetic disease. A purposive sample of adults between the ages of 20 and 49 diagnosed with Hermansky-Pudlak Syndrome was interviewed (N = 23). The majority (83%) were female. Data analysis resulted in the emergence of themes related to long road to diagnosis, learning to move forward, burden of being the expert, and survival through belonging to the HPS community.