| eNEWS MARCH 2010 |
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Share Your Personal Story about Kidney Disease
Dear Friend: March is National Kidney Month and The Kidney TRUST needs your help in spreading the word about kidney disease and the importance of early detection and treatment. We’re asking that you share a personal story about yourself or a loved one who has been affected by kidney disease so that we can put a face on this problem that now affects 31 million Americans. When Janet was 16 years old, she lost her father, Andrew, to kidney disease. “I came home from school to find my mother crying.” Her father had lost a long battle with kidney disease at the age of 58. It was 1960, four years before the invention of dialysis. There was nothing that could save him. We have come a long way from 1960. Today, when someone’s kidneys fail, they can be saved with dialysis or a kidney transplant. That’s good news, but it’s even better when we reach people before they reach this stage. Chronic kidney disease (CKD) can be delayed or prevented if caught early. The Kidney TRUST’s rapid-screening program, which has reached over 12,000 people since its launch in October 2007, has the potential to save lives. Do you know someone with kidney disease or kidney failure? Or do you know someone who lost that fight? Please click this link to visit The Kidney TRUST website. There you’ll read stories others have shared and be able to share your own. We will select stories to include on our site that exemplify the spirit of those who live with CKD and point the way for others to avoid it. We also invite you to make a gift in honor of someone you know, or in memory of someone you want to be remembered. Your tax-deductible gift will support all the work of The Kidney TRUST. With your help, the TRUST can make a tremendous difference in the lives of people with CKD. Your gift of $50, $100, $500, or any amount will help us touch the lives of many more. We will recognize these gifts to your loved ones on our website. Together, we can rewrite more stories so they have happy endings. Barbara Lawson Peggy Lipperman knows a lot about kidney disease and the critical role that the kidneys play in maintaining good health. Peggy, a retired school teacher and lifelong resident of Ohio, has lived with one kidney since 1993 when she donated a kidney to her son Tony, whose kidneys had failed during the course of his fight with diabetes. Although her health has been strong since the transplant, a routine check of her kidney function at a Kidney TRUST screening event last September showed that Peggy was potentially putting her remaining kidney at risk with an over-the-counter painkiller. Follow-up tests revealed that (unrelated to any kidney issues) she was in the early stages of lymphoma. “I will be forever grateful for that blood test,” says Peggy. “It led to the cancer being discovered at a very early stage, which definitely improves my chances of beating it.” Salina Wetmore doesn’t know how she’d manage without the help provided by The Kidney TRUST’s Financial Assistance Program (“FAP”). Salina, who is 29 years old and lives in Aurora, Colorado, has been on dialysis for almost two years. Diagnosed with lupus at only 16, Salina’s disease eventually led to kidney failure. Salina isn’t able to work, but has private medical insurance through her husband’s job at a local technology company. Salina is currently applying for social security, but the process is a long one. She says that the FAP is a bright spot in the medical system, allowing her to make co-pays for drugs and doctor visits that would otherwise be very hard to manage. “It’s so simple,” says Salina. “It’s a Mastercard that I can use anywhere for medical and drug-related costs.” |
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| More information: www.KidneyTRUST.org Email: info@kidneytrust.org | ||||||||||||||