Kidney Disease

Physicians have long believed it’s good medicine to consider race in health care. But recently, rather than perpetuate the myth that race governs how bodies function, a more nuanced approach has emerged: acknowledging that racial health disparities often reflect the effects of generations of systemic racism, such as lack of access to stable housing or nutritious food.

John “JT” Thomas was an otherwise healthy 20-year-old when he was diagnosed with kidney failure in 2012. He discusses a life-changing kidney donation alongside his living donor, Niki Nickeson, who is an acquaintance of Thomas’ from high school.

Members of the kidney transplant team at St. Louis University Hospital say including more Black people in kidney research and as donors could help address racial disparities in transplant outcomes.

When estimating how well a patient’s kidneys are working, doctors frequently turn to an equation that depends on a question: Is the patient Black?

Black people make up more than 35% of people on dialysis but just 13% of the U.S. population. They’re also less likely to get on the waitlist for a kidney transplant. Part of what is causing the disparity is that an algorithm doctors rely on uses race as a factor in evaluating all stages of kidney disease care.