Anaemia of Chronic Kidney Disease: Aligning Patient and Physician Awareness – Interviews with Three Key Opinion Leaders and Patient Advocates

Abstract

Anaemia is a common and serious complication of chronic kidney disease (CKD) that can greatly impact the daily lives of patients. However, poor awareness around anaemia of CKD (aCKD), from both physicians and patients, may impede its identification and treatment. During interviews conducted by EMJ in April 2023, leading nephrologist Christoph Wanner, University Hospital of Würzburg, Germany, and two patients/patient advocates, Daniel Gallego and Jemma Reast, gave their informed opinions on this topic. From their different viewpoints, they described how greater understanding of symptoms and treatment options could empower patients to make better choices for their own care. At the same time, they considered how greater physician awareness of aCKD, and the human impact beyond haemoglobin levels could influence diagnosis and treatment priorities. Aligning these two perspectives, they also discussed the powerful benefits of improved communication and shared decision-making between patient and physician, and its potential for relieving the burden of aCKD.