Kidney disease a ‘full blown crisis’
An ambitious strategy aims to end our dependence on dialysis by 2050. Here’s why you need a check-up.
Dialysis – Hayley’s story
A Kidney Health Australia survey of 252 adults aged 18-plus who are on dialysis, or have received dialysis treatment, found that 92% of dialysis patients experience varying levels of disruption to their weekly routines, with 67% facing significant disruption.
Despite its life-preserving role, dialysis has changed little in half a century and remains a time consuming, invasive treatment with around 50% of people on dialysis experiencing depression.
For 29-year-old Hayley Van Hostauyen, starting dialysis brought a sense of initial relief. But the ongoing treatment soon became an emotional and physical ordeal.
“People would say, ‘Well you are on dialysis now, so that’s good’, and I’d think, ‘Yeah, but you're not seeing all the days where I've had restless legs, I had a breakdown at dialysis, I've spent half of my dialysis crying’,” she said.
Almost half of dialysis recipients say treatment severely limits time spent with family. Many are connected to dialysis machines for 16-20 hours a week, with some exceeding 30 hours.
The monetary costs are equally alarming, with 82.5% of patients reporting that dialysis has put them on a path toward financial hardship.
The good news is there are new technologies and treatments for kidney disease that have the potential to revolutionise patients’ experiences.
And it’s just in time – because kidney health experts say current services are stretched to the limit, with healthcare teams already rationing life-sustaining treatments.
Kidney Health Australia predicts the number of Australians with kidney failure will jump 42% by 2030. Central Australia now has the highest rates of treated kidney failure per capita in the world.
Chronic kidney disease is projected to be the fifth leading cause of death worldwide by 2050, rising from 18th leading cause in 1990.
What is kidney disease?
Chronic kidney disease is a gradual loss of kidney function, which affects their ability to filter blood and leads to a build-up of waste and fluid inside the body. It can lead to high blood pressure, heart disease, and anaemia.
The rise in cases is being driven by an ageing population, other chronic diseases including diabetes and high blood pressure, and, ironically, patients living longer because of better treatment options.
Some services around the country are under so much pressure they’re having to offer patients dialysis only two times a week instead of the usual three. For some patients the only time that they’re able to get their treatment is overnight.
“Kidney disease is no longer an emerging problem. It is a full-blown crisis that demands immediate national action,” Chris Forbes, Kidney Health Australia CEO, said after a recent summit of health leaders who called for urgent action.
This includes the use of ground-breaking, but available, technologies, and treatments that enable early detection of disease – and promise an end to the life-disrupting treatment of dialysis.
Ending dialysis strategy
Kidney Health Australia’s roadmap to end dialysis by 2050 focuses on three key areas:
Early detection to diagnose kidney disease, allowing for intervention and access to new medications that can slow disease progression and help patients avoid ever reaching dialysis.
Innovation through research and industry partnerships to develop new treatments and technologies that improve outcomes and patients’ quality of life.
Increased living kidney transplants to reduce long-term reliance on dialysis, as transplants provide patients with better health outcomes and quality of life.
“While other technologies and treatments have advanced enormously, dialysis has barely evolved in decades, and that’s unacceptable,” Mr Forbes said. “We need a fresh approach that offers real hope to the thousands of Australians enduring this burdensome ongoing treatment.”
The burden on kidney health services could be worse. Kidney Australia says millions of Australians don’t know they have it. You can lose 90% of your kidney function before you start to feel sick, resulting in people not going to their GP to get their kidneys tested.
Missing treatments can be risky and cause fluid overload, high potassium, and high phosphorus levels in the body which can lead to severe health problems including heart attack and stroke.
In August, the Therapeutic Goods Administration announced it had approved the clinical use of Ozempic for reducing the risk of kidney disease progression in patients facing both Type 2 diabetes and chronic kidney disease.
Get a check up
Breonny Robson, the general manager of clinical research with Kidney Health Australia, says new therapies are offering patients new hope.
“There are treatments now on our PBS listed for kidney disease that can slow the progression of the disease by 15 years or more,” she said.
“There’s now a really tangible reason for people to go and get a kidney health check at their GP, get diagnosed early, and get on these treatments that can slow down their disease.”
More information about kidney disease is available here and here.
Photo by sirmudi_photography/ Pexels
