Vitiligo: A day in Lee Thomas' shoes

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Over here who could have
this disease, not have

it and I got it. I've had people
move away from me

on elevators. You know.

I've had kids cry when they
see me

and as soon as I get out of my
car, people are staring at me.

That's all day, all the time.

That's not something that's like a
light switch you turn on and off.

It happens all the time.

but it is a disease that forces you
to really examine yourself

and it's like psychological warfare.

Also on the Fox Beat tonight among those
in attendance Eminem who recently

I'm an anchor entertainment reporter
for Fox2 and

because I'm on TV here I have to
wear make up all

the time, it straight up sucks like *!#$.

That was my last shift.

Doing my job and having
this disease, the reporter

in me knows that there's an
answer if I keep digging.

Why is there not a cure?

I want repigment.

I want to look like I used to look.

So I went to a holistic doctor and I've
gone to a bunch of natural pathic

and holistic doctors that try to address
problems from the inside out.

I have a regimen that I've started that
I think bring back pigment.

This is PABA, this is cod liver oil, Beta
TCP, this

is called pigmentum, recolor neem
and it's just a plant.

This is the ayurvedic medication, this
is the cream that goes with it.

The old me is like I would never be one
of those pill guys.

How far would you go to cure yourself?

I know it's possible so, I'm very excited
about the possibility

that I could fully re-pigment.

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This is the ayurvedic cream that I use.

I put it on my face and ears and stuff.

Three times a day I take supplements
just to help everything out.

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I am getting ready to apply my make up

so, I can go to work today.

Takes me about 15 minutes to
put it on.

But you start off with the good
Vitiligo areas first.

Then you blend the rest in.

I'm like about 40% without pigment
now.

It could get much worse.

One day I may stop wearing dark
make up

and flip it to light make up.

I'm not really wanting to go
down that route.

I hope that doesn't happen
and there it is.

We're gonna keep you in studio
for the Murray show

cause we've got all the Idol stuff
and movement stuff.

Okay.

Make up comes off when I eat.

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At least one of them I need to
get done for tomorrow.

Thanks, bye!

Ah! (music)

Okay, does my face look okay?

There's something missing there?

I was looking in the monitor.

I'll be right back.

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Of ten, here we go.

American Idol Season 8 is over

and the tour begins for the contestants

but what about those judges?

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Sometimes when you know
when I sneeze when

I have to wipe my face and
make up comes off.

And I have to do touch ups
throughout the day.

So we're here at the station
and I'm gonna talk

to the make up specialist from
Cover Effects about

this new make up that I wanna try.

It'll help it stay a little better.

I'm gonna give it a shot.

Why don't you have a seat.
I can sit here?

So how is it going?

You know when I scratch or
something, it might

or especially when I blow my nose.
It moves a little bit.

It comes off a little bit.

Okay, using a setting powder with it

or you know, a make up primer
underneath it.

Those products are really the seal to
keep the make up in place.

So, it doesn't look shiny or oily.

So, let's go ahead and get started.

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So, you're thinking?

It's really cool that it's gonna
help it stay on longer

because our news cast is going
longer.

(both laughing)

How many people do you think you work
with that have Vitiligo?

Probably about 50 or 60.

Do you find people that have
a significant

amounts of pigment come back
or just little bits?

Some of them just recover completely.

There's is not as advanced as yours.

They get little ones here and there.

You know, I think I'm gonna
completely re-pigment.

And you know what, if you
continue to be that way,

you're gonna find exactly what
you're looking for.

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See how it's creeping in right there?

Right there, see that little edge?

I mean I stare at myself all the time
so, I noticed these last night.

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Amy and Mike, what's going on?

You guys all ready? All set up?

I'm going in to do a little photo
shoot.

Friend of mine, Mike Shore, who did
the pictures in my book.

We're gonna document where the
Vitilago is now

so, we can kind of see the progression.

I'm excited about this one.

I tried a little something with
the things that I

think that would help repigment
and it works.

So, pigment started coming it pretty,
like freckling in.

That's awesome

I want to be able to look and
see where it's coming back.

Then maybe again, 4 months or 2 months
or when I get significant re-pigment.

Yeah, that's what you should do.
Very cool.

Alright, you wanna do it?

Yes!

Let's do go ahead and look
towards the camera.

(music and sounds of camera)

You wanna take a look at
some of these?

Sure

Look at how much he has here
in 2007.

So, that's an '07 back to 2009.

Wow, really 2/3rds of it really.

Here is some chest. Look at that.

How much would you say?

What percentage is gone?

I said around 35-40%

Um, It's a lot.
More than 50?

55% gone. 60?

Yeah,

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It's gotten worse before it's gotten better.

The changes eye opening a little for
me because I

can't see it everywhere so, I got to
see things I hadn't seen before

and it gave me more fuel to remain
vigilant with this diet.

No matter what anybody else says,
the possibility that I could

fully re-pigment, I'm telling you I
believe it.

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Hey Lee. How you doin?
Thank you so much for meeting me.

Thank you.

It's good to see you again.

Ready for some lunch? Okay

Are you guys ready to order?

Yes, I'd like the baby spinach salad.

Skip the pecans and can I have
the walnuts.

I don't want the candy pecans.

You want the walnuts you said.

Yeah, and I still want tomatoes, onions,
and do you have black olives?

Yes, okay.

Thank you.

I have been following a very
strict diet.

It's 85% vegetables and fruit
raw and 15% cooked,

1 cooked meal a day.

That's awesome.

And part of the treatment that
I'm doing is a lotion that I put on.

It's an Indian medicine it's called
ayurvedic medication.

So I'm trying that as well.

Hopefully I'll do all these things
and the pigment will come.

You've had it since you were three?
Since 3 years old.

Since you were 2 or 3 and when my
mom, she took me to a doctor

and they knew nothing about this
at all and the

gentleman took me and laid me
on something

like a cookie sheet and they slid
me under these

bright lights, slid me in there and
they would bake me.

Tried to bake my body to turn the
pigment to come back.

And the only thing that happened
was I would get so hot,

it would blister my skin and they
would pull me out

and put oil and ointments on me
and slide me back in

and they took pictures of me to
see before

and after and all of these things
and none of that worked.

None of that helped.

So, my mom took me from doctor
to doctor and

everybody said he just have pigment
of the skin.

Don't have any pigment there.

Has it progressed any for you?

Because for me it's gotten worse
lately.

Yes.

I've had very little, very very little
progression in

the last five years I would say and
that would

die down and this area here it kind of
spread open a little bit more.

I have to tell you the journey has
been incredible.

You know I've been trying to figure
it out.

Me being the reporter that I am
and documenting

all the different things that I've done.

When I find success, I'll spell
it all out.

I just got back from California, I saw
a friend of mine.

He had a little child with him
and sitting in a little high chair

and I said Hey!

That little boy screamed as if he had
seen a ghost.

Wow!

Isn't that the toughest?

Oh, it hurt me so bad. I almost
they say I forgot

and when I got home I looked
in the mirror

and I said I don't blame the child.

You don't see a person with vigilitis
every day.

Yeah, a lot of people are still hiding
you know?

Still very afraid to come out of
the house.

No one in the world that have
vigilitis that would

hear of a cure that would not go
after it

and it doesn't matter if I'm 75
or 80 years old.

If I hear of a cure, I'm going to get it.

You're going to try it.

I'm documenting it as much as
possible cause

I know how skeptical people
can be.

If I can find my way out of it,
we all can.

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