MORE than 90 percent of people diagnosed with lupus in China will survive for at least 10 years, a huge increase from just a decade ago when less than 10 percent of patients would live that long, medical experts said yesterday at the International Congress on SLE, or systemic lupus erythematosus, the most common and serious form of the disease.

Some 1,000 experts and 600 patient representatives from home and abroad are taking part in the five-day conference in Shanghai, discussing the latest developments in lupus treatment, prevention and control.

Lupus is a chronic inflammatory disease that can hit the joints, skin, kidney, blood cells, heart and lungs when the immune system attacks the body's own tissues and organs.

About one million people suffer from SLE in China, the great majority of whom are women of child-bearing age.

"The outlook for people with lupus was once grim, but diagnosis and treatment of lupus have improved considerably. With proper care, most people with lupus can have normal lives," said Dr. Chen Shunle of Shanghai Renjin Hospital.