She signed up for a complicated clinical trial. It may cure her lupus.

West Virginia teacher Sierra Butler spent years of her life dealing with symptoms she couldn't connect including fatigue, joint pain and weight loss. In 2020, she lost over 100 pounds — and the ability to walk.

Finally, she got a diagnosis: lupus, a chronic autoimmune disease that causes pain and inflammation in the body. 

In some people, lupus can affect the heart and cardiovascular system. That's what happened to Butler: During the summer of 2020, she was in and out of the hospital, sometimes staying in the intensive care unit for days at a time. One night, she had an overwhelming sense of impending doom and called 911.