About 20 million Americans are affected by kidney and urologic diseases, and millions more are at risk. Kidney disease is one of the costliest illnesses in the United States today.

1. More than 50,000 Americans die each year because of kidney disease.
2. More than 260,000 suffer from chronic kidney failure and need dialysis or kidney transplants to stay alive.
3. More than 35,000 patients need kidney transplants, but only 11,000 will receive transplants this year because of a lack of suitable organ donors.
4. Type II diabetes is the leading cause of chronic kidney failure.
5. Uncontrolled or poorly controlled high blood pressure is the second leading cause.