March 20, 2008 Worcester residents check for kidney disease Play video

(NECN) – Kidney disease affects millions of Americans. Most don’t know they have it until their kidneys start to fail. There is an effort in Worcester to get residents tested so they can get immediate treatment.

Dozens showed up at the Senior Center in Worcester Thursday to get their blood pressure taken, have a blood and urine test, and received a medical evaluation - three steps to check for kidney disease.

“So, I thought well, it's the kind of thing I probably should look into for myself. I haven’t had any many medical problems, but I want to keep up on things.”

Arlene Swirsky, is a volunteer for the National Kidney Foundation, she knows first hand what it's like to suffer from kidney disease.

“Its not a good way to live...you can live that way...but you don't want to.”

Arlene was born with polycystic kidney disease, a genetic disorder that eventually causes the kidneys to fail, but it wasn't until she turned 40 that she found out she had it.

“I could not walk upstairs without taking a rest, couldn't walk across the room without taking a rest it its a debilitating disease.”

Her kidney function slowed down to the point that she would need a kidney transplant to live. She waited three years to find a match.

Arlene realizes that some patients never find a donor, which motivates her to help others catch the problem early on to seek treatment. 26 million Americans are estimated to be living with

“We have to tools to detect and treat it, we don't have recognition of the problem.”

Doctor Jeffrey Stoff of UMass Medical Center says that without testing for the disease, there are few telltale physical signs.

“The signs occur when you've lost 50% of your kidney function, usually not till you lose 70 to 80% will you become symptomatic.”

By that point, the condition is hard to reverse or cure, which makes early detection through clinics like these...life saving.