As the number of diabetes patients continues to rise in China, so does the prevalence of end-stage kidney disease—and the demand for dialysis treatment. According to a report released in April by the National Institute of Health Data Science at Peking University, more than 100 million Chinese have chronic kidney disease. Diabetes is a major risk factor in end-stage kidney disease.
But even as the need for dialysis grows, fewer than one-third of end-stage renal disease patients in China have access to dialysis. The need is particularly acute in rural regions, where dialysis treatment is limited by financial constraints and scarce clinical availability.