The National Kidney Foundation Presents Shaul G. Massry Award to UNC Researcher

NEW YORK, Dec. 15, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Each year the National Kidney Foundation (NKF) considers the work of hundreds of specialists, advocates, and volunteers in the field of nephrology and selects among them those who most exemplify the relentless efforts of NKF to enhance the lives of patients through action, education, and accelerating change.

Their work is vital to the 37 million adults in the U.S. who are affected by kidney disease and the 1 in 3 people who are at risk. NKF will honor these men and women at the 2022 Spring Clinical Meetings, which is being held in Boston from April 6-10.

Since 1996, NKF has been presenting the Shaul G. Massry Distinguished Lecture in honor of Dr. Massry for his scientific achievements and contributions to kidney health care and NKF and this year's recipient is Jennifer E. Flythe, MD, MPH, Associate Professor of Medicine and Vice Chief of the Division of Nephrology and Hypertension at the University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill.

"Dr. Massry has made enormous contributions to the kidney community – in discovery, education, advocacy, and leadership – and I am incredibly honored to have been selected to give his namesake lecture at the NKF annual meeting. I'm speechless actually," Dr. Flythe said. "My relationships with patients – in the realms of clinical care, research, and advocacy – fuel my passion for kidney health and inspire me to seek innovative approaches to improving the health and well-being of people affected by kidney disease."         

Dr. Flythe serves as Vice Chief of the UNC Division of Nephrology and Hypertension and Director of Dialysis Services for UNC Hospitals. Her research aims to improve the safety and experiences of individuals living with kidney disease by bettering patient-reported and biomedical outcomes. Dr. Flythe's research interests include dialysis volume management and hemodynamics, patient-reported outcomes and patient preferences, patient education, pharmacoepidemiology, and patient-centered clinical trials. She is committed to ensuring that patient priorities drive her outcomes research. In all her work, she collaborates with diverse stakeholders to build kidney community research capacity, enhance research design, promote clinical uptake of findings, and improve care delivery.

"Dr. Flythe goes beyond her research, clinical care, and administrative duties, as an involved and engaged member of the Kidney Health Initiative Board of Directors, KDIGO Executive Committee, numerous kidney journal editorial boards, and national education initiatives, including those of the National Kidney Foundation," said NKF President, Paul Palevsky, MD. "She is an inspiration."

To learn more about her research, please go to https://unckidneycenter.org/research/unc-dialysis-research

NKF Spring Clinical Meetings
For the past 30 years, nephrology healthcare professionals from across the country have come to NKF's Spring Clinical Meetings to learn about the newest developments related to all aspects of nephrology practice; network with colleagues; and present their research findings. The NKF Spring Clinical Meetings are designed for meaningful change in the multidisciplinary healthcare teams' skills, performance, and patient health outcomes. It is the only conference of its kind that focuses on translating science into practice for the entire healthcare team. This year's event will be held in Boston, April 6-10.

About Kidney Disease
In the United States, 37 million adults are estimated to have kidney disease, also known as chronic kidney disease (CKD)—and approximately 90 percent don't know they have it.  1 in 3 adults in the U.S. are at risk for kidney disease.  Risk factors for kidney disease include: diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, obesity, and family history. People of Black/African American, Hispanic/Latino, American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian American, or Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander descent are at increased risk for developing the disease. Black/African American people are more than 3 times as likely as White people to have kidney failure.  Hispanics/Latinos are 1.3 times more likely than non-Hispanics to have kidney failure.

NKF Professional Membership
Healthcare professionals can join NKF to receive access to tools and resources for both patients and professionals, discounts on professional education, and access to a network of thousands of individuals who treat patients with kidney disease. 

About the National Kidney Foundation
The National Kidney Foundation (NKF) is the largest, most comprehensive, and longstanding patient-centric organization dedicated to the awareness, prevention, and treatment of kidney disease in the U.S. For more information about NKF, visit www.kidney.org.

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SOURCE National Kidney Foundation