In what may come to be a significant and exemplary discovery, researchers claim to have identified 20 genes that are held responsible for causing kidney diseases. This finding has the potential of dramatically altering treatment of these diseases.
It is a known fact that Chronic Kidney Disease is a long term condition. Patients afflicted with this disease gradually lose function of their kidneys. This loss of function of the kidney leads to a slowing down of other organs as well.
The importance of this research is evident. Kidney disorders are slow and they usually are not accompanied by any major symptoms. By the time patients usually discover that their kidneys have been affected, it is too late to reverse kidney damage.
Dr. Jim Wilson from the University of Edinburgh says, "No-one knows who will be affected or when kidney disease may strike next, so even more research needs to be funded to help us tackle this challenge".
Renal failure has also been noted to be a major cause of death. Moreover, there is a worldwide shortage of donor kidneys. It is known that patients in need of a healthy kidney have to wait for months or even years before they can undergo a transplant. The demand for kidneys is also the highest in comparison to other organs.
This dearth of kidneys leads to black marketeering of the organ. In third world countries like India, where 70% of the population is below the poverty line, the poor and needy are lured into kidney donation for a meager sum of money. These kidneys are then sold at exorbitant prices to those who wish to jump the wait list.
Even after a kidney is made available for transplant, there are high chances that the recipient's body will reject the organ. Dialysis is the other option available to patients.
In this scenario the identification of 20 genes, which could help enlighten doctors about the causes of kidney disease, has opened a window of hope for thousands of kidney disease patients throughout the world.
It would be correct to extol the study as a path breaking discovery.