Opinion: Kidney disease is a killer. More precise classification can help tame it

Kidney disease, once commonly thought of as a single entity, has become far more complicated. That’s a good thing, because it opens the door for better and more precise treatments.

Back in 2002, the National Kidney Foundation published the five stages of kidney. That was an important step forward in classifying and treating chronic kidney disease, which affects . These stages helped better identify the progression of the disease, as the tissue destruction and scarring captured in the stages cause an ongoing loss of kidney function.