Webinar on Need for Innovation in Renal Replacement Therapy (RRT)

Invitational webinar - a side meeting of the 57th (virtual) congress of ERA-EDTA.

In the Bulletin of the World Health Organization (WHO), chronic kidney disease (CKD) has been described as “the most neglected chronic disease”. CKD is a major and growing health burden in Europe with yearly growing costs that will become unsustainable without truly disruptive innovation. Dialysis treatment is still costly and with poor outcomes.

Each year one out of six dialysis patients dies.
Ground-breaking innovation with improvements for kidney patients is still missing. This is why the Dutch Kidney Foundation (DKF), ERA-EDTA and the European Kidney Health Alliance (EKHA) join forces in making the first steps towards these much needed ground-breaking innovations in renal replacement therapy (RRT) in Europe. On 9th June 2020 we host the kick-off meeting in a webinar as a side-meeting of the 57th congress of ERA-EDTA.

The webinar has taken place on Tuesday 9 June 2020 from 14.30 to 16.45 h as a side meeting of the 57th (virtual) congress of ERA EDTA. You can watch some of the highlights in the compilation.

Need for action

Coordination and collaboration is the only answer to break the deadlock and improve the lives of more than 2.5 million kidney patients worldwide in an affordable way. Kidney Health Initiative USA is an inspiring example on how to change a status quo by a crossroad of different disciplines to improve kidney care for American kidney patients.

ERA-EDTA, EKHA and the Dutch Kidney Foundation are strongly motivated to take the lead in initiating this process in Europe. It is in the interest of kidney patients across Europe that European stakeholders and the EU recognize the need for a change in kidney care and are willing to contribute to innovation in renal replacement therapy.

Kidney Health Initiative USA

The American Society of Nephrology (ASN) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) started the Kidney Health Initiative: an international public-private consortium that aims to accelerate innovations for kidney patients.

The KHI has established a technology roadmap for Innovative Approaches to Renal Replacement Therapy, agreed upon by a consortium of relevant partners covering patient-oriented organizations, nurse associations, doctors associations, research institutes, medtech industry, health-care providers, health-care payers/insurers, governmental bodies, and international standardization bodies.

The US government has established KidneyX to provide funding for grant proposals that match this roadmap. The KHI can be seen as the stimulating force for the US president to sign an executive order in July 2019 to launch Advancing American Kidney Health, to improve kidney care for American kidney patients.

Webinar

The webinar is a kickoff in joining forces and working together in making the first steps towards these ground-breaking innovations in renal replacement therapy in Europe. Finally a worldwide consortium is needed to boost innovation, and therefore ERA-EDTA, EKHA and DKF strive for close collaboration with the KHI.

Practical information

Tuesday 9 June 2020
Starting 14.30h - 16.45h CEST, UTC+2 (= Bussum, Amsterdam, Berlin, Paris, Milan time)
By invitation. Participants will receive link for the webinar by email.
No fees involved.

Contact

For more information and contact please send an email to the Dutch Kidney Foundation: research@nierstichting.nl.

Overview programme and keynote speakers

In a short film kidney patients Wim Sipma, Henning Søndergaard, William Withers and Fiona Loud will tell us their story and emphasize the need for change and innovation. Some of them wrote an article about the need for innovation in dialysis.

Interview with prof Christoph Wanner and Tom Oostrom. Christoph is forthcoming chair of the ERA-EDTA, Tom is director of the Dutch Kidney Foundation.

Prof. Raymond Vanholder on the impact of kidney disease on patients and society. Raymond is chair of EKHA.

Dr. Murray Sheldon on an international roadmap for Innovative Renal Replacement Therapy. Murray is Associate Director for Technology & Innovation, FDA USA.

Anna Prokupkova on the succesful EU cancer lobby. Anna is ECL’s Advocacy & Project Manager.

Prof. Dr. Clemens van Blitterswijk on the journey from a portable to a regenerated kidney, a moonshot strategy. Clemens works at the faculty of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences, Maastricht University.

Roderik van Grieken (Dutch Debate Institute) will chair the meeting. Roderik is founder of the Dutch Debate Institute.

View programme

Organising committee

ERA-EDTA

The European Renal Association – European Dialysis and Transplant Association (ERA-EDTA) is the leading EU medical association of nephrologists.

EKHA

European Kidney Health Alliance (EKHA) is an alliance of non-profit organisations representing key stakeholders in kidney health issues, including patients, nephrologists, researchers and healthcare workers.

Dutch Kidney Foundation

The Dutch Kidney Foundation focuses its activities on kidney patients in the Netherlands. Our central goal is improving the quality of life of kidney patients.