World Kidney Day at St. Frances Cabrini

When the author of this blogsite was still in college, her least favorite topic were the kidneys because the author finds these organs boring to the core. The author thinks they were just bean-shaped organs with the least exciting job, to collect the waste products of metabolism. What is metabolism? It is a series of chemical processes responsible for keeping our cells, actually, our whole body, alive and kicking. Now that is more exciting than to study than two pairs of organs collecting wastes. As my college years dragged on and started hinting on choices of becoming a doctor or an environmentalist, in-between those confusing moments, the author got to know the kidneys a little better and realized that there was more to them than meets the eye. These pair of organs can develop afflictions that can alter or paralyze one’s way of life. The influence of these organs were large enough to create a day to pay homage to them and inform the people to take care of these little waste collectors inside our bodies. Thus, World Kidney Day was born through the joint initiative of the International Society of Nephrology and the International Federation of Kidney Foundation.

World Kidney Day is observed annually on the 2nd Thursday of March. It was started in 2006 and 66 countries pioneered on this cause. Today, more than 88 countries participate in this event. This event was created to raise awareness about afflictions of the kidney. Although many of these are curable, they are still a secondary medical concern for a large part of the human population.

In observance of World Kidney Day, and as part of St. Cabrini Cancer Institute’s awareness campaign on how to be kidney-disease free, we celebrated the event last March 11, 2015 at the Social Hall of St. Cabrini Cancer Institute.

Speakers for the event includes in-house Nephrologist, Dr. Nathaniel Agoncillo and in-house Urologist, Dr. Stephen Nazareth. Both doctors were very patient and accommodating.

What made us happy were the participants who showed much than willing to know more about kidney diseases and how to avoid them. There were also participants from the patient side who were also very keen on sharing their experiences.

It was a worthwhile experience on all sides, the audience, the patient, and the doctors. This is one of St. Cabrini Cancer Institute’s unrelenting efforts to fulfill its mission of passionately striving to anticipate healthcare and wellness needs and deliver high-quality service towards the improvement of people’s lives.

#kidney #worldkidneyday #stcabrinicancerinstitute #wkd