The Anemia Link: Chronic Kidney Disease, Diabetes And Cardiovascular Disease (NAPSA)—According to the National Kidney Foundation, chronic kidney disease (CKD) affects 20 million Americans and another 20 million are at high risk for developing this progressive loss of kidney function. This disease can cause the kidneysto fail, forcing patients to receive life-sav- ing dialysis (the process of artifi- cially cleansing the blood) or a kidney transplant. The American Heart Association reports that people with CKD, even those in the early stages of the disease, are in the highest-risk group for cardiovascular disease. Recent data show that the major- ity of CKD patients die of cardiovascular complications before they | a a id & Mi, he, —h ie ' ‘i _ Cp) i The American Heart Association reports that people with chronic kidney disease (CKD)are in the highestrisk group for heart disease. examine the impact that treating ever reach dialysis. The increased cardiovascular risk found in patients with CKDis related to anemia has on mortality and nonfatal cardiovascular events in patients with CKD and type 2 diabetes. This clinical trial, called Anemia occurs when the amount vascular Events with Aranesp decreases. This causes the heart to 4,000 patients at 700 sites around the world. several risk factors, including high blood pressure and anemia. of oxygen-carrying red blood cells work harder to provide enough oxy- gen to the body. To date, there have been noclinical trials to determine whether anemia has an impact on cardiovascular events, such as heart attacks, stroke, heart failure and death in high-risk patients with CKD andtype 2 diabetes. Now a group of researchers led by Dr. Marc Pfeffer, chief of medi- cine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and professor at Harvard Medical School, is investigating the potential connection between anemia, type 2 diabetes and car- diovascular events. This study will TREAT (Trial to Reduce Cardio- Therapy), will study more than “Physicians have long assumed that anemia is an important and treatable risk factor for cardiovascular disease in patients with CKD and type 2 diabetes,” said Marc Pfeffer, M.D. “The results of this trial should provide physicians with data that will, for the first time, definitively evaluate the impact that treating anemia has on patients living with chronic kidney disease and diabetes.” For more information about TREAT, call 1-866-57AMGEN or visit www.amgentrials.com.
