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Current ResearchThe goal of the MMRF’s Kidney Disease Research Program is to reduce the overwhelming costs and human suffering associated with kidney disease and to improve the lives of patients everywhere. Kidney Failure The loss of function of both kidneys results in total kidney failure or end stage renal disease (ESRD). More than 250,000 Americans have kidney failure due to factors such as the high incidence of diabetes and our aging population. Despite advances in dialysis and transplantation, current treatments are painful, have many complications, and leave the majority of patients in a disabled state. Because kidneys perform so many important functions, kidney failure is an immediate, life-threatening condition. Unless treated, patients who experience kidney failure can die within days because of the build-up of toxins and fluid in their blood. Approximately 300,000 Americans have ESRD and this number increases by about seven percent each year. Current treatments include dialysis, which artificially replaces the functions of the kidney, and kidney transplants. While dialysis and improved treatments keep most ESRD patients alive, these developments mean that more people are living with this debilitating and costly disease. In 1994, the Centers for Disease Control estimated total costs of ESRD to be around $11 billion in the United States. MMRF researchers hope that by studying therapies to prevent injury and accelerate repair of the kidneys, they can improve patient care and lower the financial and emotional costs of this life-threatening disease. They hope to be able to prevent people from having to go on dialysis. When kidneys fail after surgery or accident, new therapies are being developed to reduce the number of patient deaths. In addition, MMRF researchers are conducting research on ways to improve the viability of kidneys available for transplant.
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