BUFFALO, NY - Sunday morning at Buffalo's Outer Harbor marked the first ever Kidney Walk and 5K organized by the Kidney Foundation of Western New York, and it came with an important health message.
Hundreds of people took part in the event, including one man who had a kidney transplant last year at ECMC, to help give him a new chance at life after suffering from Polycystic Kidney Disease.
The foundation says it is crucial for all of us to learn more about the function of our kidneys.
"Unfortunately up to one-in-seven Americans has kidney disease, but many people don't know about it," says WNY Kidney Foundation Manager, Jeremy Morlock. "You can lose up to 90-percent of your kidney function before you necessarily develop symptoms. And so we wanna let people know what those risk factors are, that they should get screened, to talk to your doctor about kidney health."
Walkers and runners raised an estimated $39,000 for the foundation in this event.
The Kidney Foundation of Western New York offers various programs surrounding awareness, information, patient support and advocacy in the eight county area of the region. For more information you can visit their website.