Kidney health for all: caring for people, protecting the planet

Abstract

The current kidney care model with its focus on late-stage disease and in-center hemo-dialysis is unsustainable, largely because of costs, environmental burden, poor outcomes, and reduced quality of life. Recognition of kidney disease by the 78th World Health Assembly as a serious health threat presents a critical opportunity to reshape kidney care. Aligned with this, the 2026 World Kidney Day theme, “Kidney Health for All: Caring for People, Protecting the Planet”, calls for a systematic change. A sustainable model must prioritize early detection and prevention, reducing the need for kidney replacement therapy. Transplantation and home dialysis benefit people with kidney failure, environment and society, however, dialysis itself must become more eco-friendly without compromising care quality, recognizing that planetary perturbations in turn affect kidney health. Conservative care should also be considered, particularly in the case of elderly and frail patients when the quality-of-life benefits potentially out-weigh the perspectives offered by dialysis. Achieving this shift requires coordinated action across all stakeholders; education and engagement of the public, policy makers and health professionals to raise awareness about the threat of kidney disease; and an urgent move toward patient-centered care.