Kidney Disease & Renal Transplant
Kidney Disease
Chronic kidney disease is the 10th leading cause of death in the U.S. Approximately 800,000 people have end stage renal disease (ESRD), and it's expected to reach 1 million by 2030. Early diagnosis and prevention are effective strategies, including diligent blood pressure control, diet and nutrition, exercise, adequate sleep, and other lifestyle factors. Identifying genetic etiologies is becoming increasingly important with more than 77,000 genetic tests currently in use, and others in development. Early intervention with medications to treat or slow progression of the disease is an important intervention for thousands of patients. If progression to ESRD does occur, then living donor transplantation is the gold standard of care.
New and exciting treatments are being developed including xenotransplantation of kidneys from one species to another, 3-D printing of kidneys with stem cells, and others.
Renal Analytical Platform for Transplant Outcomes Research (RAPTOR): In continued collaboration with leading researchers, SixTen is donating time and expertise to support the charitable non-profit. RAPTOR is currently designing and building the largest and most comprehensive, US nationwide, integrated data platform for people with severe kidney disease and transplantation. This platform is exceptionally broad with integrated claims for over 30m patients. RAPTOR recently incorporated laboratory and genetic test results for a subset of patients. Social determinants of health data and mortality data were integrated into the platform in early 2025. We are passionate about the new platform to help advance the diagnosis and treatment of kidney disease, including transplantation.
Additional publications and presentations at scientific meetings are planned for 2026.
Kidney disease is a significant health challenge globally with an estimated global prevalence of 9%. The main risk factors for chronic kidney disease are diabetes, high blood pressure, infections, autoimmune disorders and genetic factors. Beyond our US nationwide platform, we have access to comprehensive Nordic data including test results in a population of 6 million+ people. This cohort has information on hospital admissions, outpatient clinic visits, diagnoses, examinations, prescriptions, biopsies, surgical procedures, social data, dialysis and other treatments for more than 25 years.
