A new drug application was filed by Akebia Therapeutics with the FDA for vadadustat, a drug to treat anemia in adult patients not on dialysis and those that are dialysis-dependent. The FDA's review of data from its non-dialysis and dialysis trials over the next 60 days will establish if the NDA is acceptable for review, according to Akebia CEO John Butler.
A Clinical Research Study for Adults with FSGS We are looking for adults of African, Caribbean, or Latin American descent with a type of biopsy-confirmed kidney disease called Focal Segmental Glomerulosclerosis (FSGS) to participate. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of an investigational medication in individuals with APOL1-dependent FSGS. Learn more about this study
A study of more than 900,000 commercially insured patients with type 2 diabetes found that Black and female patients, and those low socioeconomic status, are less likely to be prescribed SGLT2 inhibitors, which guard against kidney disease progression and cardiovascular events, researchers report in JAMA Open Access. The gap could exacerbate existing disparities in kidney and cardiovascular disease outcomes, the authors said.
A study in the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology found patients on maintenance hemodialysis who received two doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine achieved a good antibody response, but the response was lower than the level documented in health care workers without kidney diseases. There was an inverse relationship between antibody levels and older age for both groups, researchers said.
The Home Dialysis Care Experience tool was designed to assess patient experience in home dialysis care, researchers reported in the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology. The tool is available for use in clinical practice settings.
A study in JAMA Network Open predicted a 12% increase in the overall number of cancer cases in the US each year, from less than 1.74 million last year to more than 1.88 million by 2040, despite an almost 27% decrease in overall annual cancer death rates over the same period. Breast cancer will lead the most common cancers, followed by melanoma, kidney and renal pelvis, and leukemia.
House lawmakers voted 384-38 to pass a bill that would delay 2% Medicare payment cuts until year-end. The legislation now heads to President Joe Biden for his expected signature.
The correct drug dosing based on an individual patient's condition is challenging, especially for patients with altered kidney function, write Rachel Eyler of Wolters Kluwer Health and Bruce Mueller, of the University of Michigan College of Pharmacy and Wolters Kluwer Health. As part of the drug approval process, regulatory agencies should mandate that studies include patients with kidney dysfunction to help clinicians make informed decisions about renal dose adjustments.
Zoe Richards has fought kidney disease for three years, and after she learned she needed a transplant last year, a global search for a match was started. Meanwhile, her best friend got tested for compatibility but didn't tell Richards until she received the happy news that she was a match and could save her friend's life. "From that point I knew I'd made the right decision," Rosie Morgan recalls.
Aetna agreed to expand its value-based care agreement with Fresenius Medical Care North America to include Medicare Advantage members with end-stage renal disease. The deal, effective Jan. 1, 2022 will give Aetna's MA members access to Fresenius' 2,600 dialysis center and home dialysis services, while reimbursement will be aligned with health cost reductions and quality benchmarks.
On May 4, a multidiscipline panel of experts will discuss the utility of the cystatin C test in diagnosing kidney disease, including benefits, racial bias and barriers to testing. Register today. Thank you to the experts from Johns Hopkins Medicine, University of California San Francisco and University of Minnesota, and to Gentian Diagnostics AS for helping to make this event possible.
April prepares her green traffic light and the world thinks Go.
Christopher Morley, writer, editor, journalist
The American Kidney Fund (AKF) fights kidney disease on all fronts. Through programs of prevention, early detection, financial support, disease management, clinical research, innovation and advocacy, no nonprofit kidney organization impacts more lives than AKF. AKF is one of the nation’s highest-rated nonprofits and spends 97 cents of every donated dollar on programs. Visit KidneyFund.org, or connect with AKF on Facebook, Twitter , Instagram and LinkedIn.
AKF provides this news roundup as a service to the kidney community. The news reported in KidneyPro SmartBrief is not necessarily endorsed by the American Kidney Fund.
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