Strategy on Kidney Disease

I wanted to thank everyone who contacted me about our Government developing a specific strategy to tackle kidney disease, and outline some of the steps we are taking to ensure kidney disease, and chronic kidney disease, are treated with the urgency they need.

I sympathise profoundly with those affected by kidney disease, whether facing a diagnosis themselves or supporting a loved one. I know this can be a debilitating condition, and I strongly back efforts to improve outcomes for patients.

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) affects an estimated 7.2 million people in the UK - this is shockingly high. Many cases remain undiagnosed until symptoms become harder to manage, so earlier detection is essential. Simple measures such as routine blood-pressure checks and urine testing can identify risk much sooner, so I recognise we need to be prioritising ensuring these measures are accessible to everyone, so no one goes missed and undiagnosed.

The NHS must continue shifting from sickness to prevention. Our Government’s 10-Year Health Plan sets out this ambition, with a transformation from hospital to community, analogue to digital, and reactive treatment to proactive prevention. This includes strengthening Stop Smoking Services, expanding access to obesity medicines, widening digital prevention tools and delivering millions of free blood-pressure checks in community pharmacies. These services play a vital role in identifying people at risk of CKD and kidney disease and reducing avoidable harm.

Further work to strengthen kidney care services is ongoing, and is vital. NHS England’s renal Clinical Reference Group is accelerating improvements in diagnosis and treatment, and the Renal Services Transformation Programme is reducing unwarranted variation and expanding access to home therapies. The National Institute for Health and Care Research has invested more than £37 million in kidney-disease research over the past five years, which I am really encouraged by.

Please rest assured that I will continue to support efforts that give people with CKD earlier diagnosis, fairer access to care and the support every patient deserves.